A Life For A Life
by ChaosCrusader
Summary: He is the notorious pirates who beats up marines; she is the knight who slashes off villains. One sight on his bounty poster and she knows that she owes him a debt...
1. Chapter 1 Prologue

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention**

* * *

I'm one of the members of North Blue's Knight, who is currently pursuing my life-span goal in Royal Academy of Knights. By that you can tell I'm a knight, but surely you couldn't tell that I'm a female knight.

That's right, I am a female knight. I'm happy to be different from other girls in my town who always do nothing but chit-chat and helping their mothers in the kitchen or even go with their fathers in the market to earn their livings. But that doesn't mean I look down on them. 'Cause they can cook a thousand times better than me. And so their future are secure with their cooking skills which help them to tie their husbands up by catching their appetite.

A normal girl is just not the right words to describe me since I got into knights' world.

You see, to be chosen in this academy, I have three words for you.

SO. DAMN. HARD.

No joke. It's no use if you are good in how you handle a sword only.

The interview caused me a pretty hard time. But I didn't tremble or having matter of some urgency to pee. It almost scared me off by standing in front of those interviewers who were darn good knights or swordsmen as well and each of them was holding a large sword with beautifully carved hilt which seemed to be thirsty for my blood... Urgh, not my blood, though. Some other villains', maybe... But I wasn't fear. I remembered what my cousin brother, Exile, who was officially a knight too, told me before I went for my interview.

_"Don't get scare off by them cause they are worried as well... They're just worry that any stronger knights may chop them into pieces too so they'll be holding their swords with them! Just show them you are strong enough to chop them off HAHAHAHAHAHA..."_

_"No, I'm not scare. I'm much stronger compare to other guys of my age."_

_"Then you may proceed to be the one who scares them off..."_

So, with excellent fencing style plus high-running adrenaline and stamina plus a great strength that could chop a big stone in the room's wall plus super flexibility that you might mistake me as a gymnast plus determination to scare them off and with an extra point that I was a born noble, I managed to get a distinction and sweep other girls away who came for interview too. All thanks to my cousin's quote of motivation, I guessed.

You should watch those girls' expressions when they were announced to be one of the failures cause they were so confident by having pretty faces. Excuse me, those cheesy girls were actually thought that they could slash things by using swords while holding the swords in a proper way was a big headache for them. GOSH. If they were chosen, I would probably ended up jumping into the sea then.

Seriously, being a knight does not equal to being attractive with those suits on you. You've got to be strong and burden with tons of responsibilities as people are putting their life on you. Such selfishness, and eventually, us knights have already accepted the truth and got used to it.

A female knight can be an attractive one, but I don't count myself as attractive. My comrade, Aurora, is certainly a beauty. We're best friends and we knew each other since we both were the only chosen girls got chosen on the same year. Aurora has wavy long blonde hair, but strangely she has purple eyes. Well, that doesn't make her less attractive. There are always lots of honey bees and butterflies around her wherever she goes. Not to mention some flies too.

On the other hand, I have shoulder-length black short hair, and a pair of small, sharp eyes which have stare that kills. But still... some guys got hooked by me and I don't know why. Maybe they are masochist and they enjoy watching me slash people. For god's sake...

* * *

And today, is another hard day after having tough training with our master. I happen to be passed by a busy street and notice there are new post on the notice board. The latest post will never get rid of me cause I love reading interesting post with stories or news around the world that I've waited so long to travel out there.

_"Excuse me, please let me through."_

Hmm... two pirates were caught and sent to Enies Lobby this afternoon.

_"My, my, still can't get enough of pirates' stories, Miss Valerie?"_

I turn around, and there stands Aurora.

_"You know exactly how I feel for traveling around the world."_

_"Yes, and why not you set sail as soon as possible? Feeling sad to leave your best friend? How considerate you are," _Aurora gives me a naughty look.

_"Shut up. I'm not a considerate one. I still can't find the best chance to leave," _I let my hand runs through my hair which flying along the breeze.

_"You have a problem with our master?"_

_"No. He's been supporting my dream all the time. It's good to go explore out there, ya' know?"_

Both of us remain silence for a while. And then Aurora pokes me. She points at one of the pirates' bounty poster.

_"This guy is a weirdo, and he has a high bounty," _Aurora whispers.

My sight follows her finger. I gasp.

It's Trafalgar Law, with a bounty of 200 million.

My lips curve into a smile. I think I have got the right time for my dream.


	2. Chapter 2

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: Thanks, and here's the new chapter! Well, wait till the moment you see her kills xD**

* * *

I am now heading for my master's office, dragging a body behind me. Aurora just seems to be couldn't let go of me cause she thought I was joking earlier and now she realizes she's on the edge of losing a friend... Though not losing, it's not that I'm gonna leave her forever, still...

_"Aurora, let go of me. NOW." _I glare at her while checking around to see by-standers giggling at a scene like this. This is so embarrassing, I feel like wanna give each of them a punch to their faces.

_"Valerie~~~ Please don't leave me! I swear I will not compete with you in history studies of knights! I will let you get the highest mark in every examination! Gah, why are you so strong? You manage to drag me for 15 minutes long..." _

_"Stop throwing tantrums like a child. It makes me wanna puke." _I'm feeling weird right now, and very stupid. I stop and pull her fingers off me but she yells even louder. Great, she makes the whole situation worse. Now I'm the bad guy who loves bullying and she's the one who get bullied for getting into my nerve.

I let out a sigh._ "Please Aurora, you know that I got C+ for Patience," _a sick feeling has settled in my stomach, _"and I got A+ for Butt-kicking."_

_"Liar. You're such a lousy liar. I know there was Patience, but not the Butt-kicking thingy. If there was, why should I even care? You're not going to kick my ass, aren't you? If there was Lying, you would get a miserable D-." _She releases her hands from my legs and stands up from the ground. Finally, it takes forever to stop her nonsense. She pats dirt from he coat and kneecaps.

_"So," _she gives me an alluring smile before she continues, _" can I have your permission to follow you to wherever you want to go or to whoever you want to meet?"_

Having no other choices, I nod reluctantly.

* * *

Our master wears round glasses, and he has facial hair that arranged in stripe-like pattern across his lower jaw. Although he's an old man, his body is well-built and very well-toned. Here's a reminder, don't ever be deceived by one's appearance. Just like the old says, don't judge a book by its cover. Master's the one who gives us hell-like training and will laugh at us if we fail to complete his tasks and will shake his butt at us after his demonstration while waiting for us to get up until we finish them. Unless you prefer to be kept on insulting by an old man, just lie down at his feet and die with disgrace.

Master's room's a simple one. Not more than hundred books on the bookshelves, but more than hundred swords on the wall. He won't let us lay a finger on his precious collection.

I begin to tell master the reason for meeting him. Aurora's by my side like a good girl, both of them hear every word that come out from my mouth. After explaining to him that I want to go out to the sea, master remains silence. Wow, you can actually feel the awkwardness in the room.

I think he's going to be angry, but to my surprise he tips his head back and laughs, long and loud. I'm so surprised by his reaction that I just stand there, knowing nothing what to do. Aurora's staring blankly at me, she too has no idea for what's running in master's mind. I shrug my shoulders in reply.

_"Are you sure you want to become a pirate by now?" _He finally speaks after a pretty long laughing. I feel ashamed.

Aurora gives me a skeptical look. _"Valerie, what's with the pirate thing?"_

_"..." _I open my mouth but no word come out. I wonder what's her reaction if she finds out that her so-called best friend keeps secrets from her. Will she tear her hair off or will she tear mine? No, she certainly will not go easy on me. Perhaps she'll get hold one of the master's collection and aim at my heart and stab me to death and I will have my last breath watching master stab at Aurora that his sword is all filthy with my blood stain on it. Such dramatic plotting, not bad, not bad...

_"Is it because of that Trafalgar guy?" _My stomach flips as master finishes his sentence.

_"Um... yeah." _

_"Valerie! Don't tell me you're going to become a pirate in order to find that guy! What's with you and him? Isn't your dream to become a traveler and write a book of what you have discovered by then?" _

_"Aurora, calm down. Here's some tips for you, Valerie. Slash people, get a high bounty, maybe a devil fruit will help." _Master shows his clear-white teeth while drinking another bottle of alcohol.

_"Thanks. I'm glad that you support my decision. And for the tips too."_ Satisfied, I walk towards the door.

_"Valerie!" _Oops, Aurora is barreling with all her might.

_"You're not afraid, aren't you? My advice is you better get some sleep by now and set sail by tomorrow morning. Meet me at Veloo Plaza before you leave, 7.00a.m."_

_"Deal."_

_"Valerie? Valerie!" _Aurora stomps her feet as she following me out from the office.

Of course I'm not afraid. I can't wait. I would have it done by now, if I could.


	3. Chapter 3

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it. :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**Camierose: hahaha ...**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: Know more about it in this chapter~~**

**fangirl-4evEr-xx: Thanks. I admire cool girls who fight well too xD**

* * *

I wake up in the darkness from a nightmare about my mother. I sit up straight, and for one panicked second don't know where I am. The faulty springs squeal underneath me and then I remember. I fumble for my alarm clock and see that it's already 3.24. Two hours and thirty-six minutes left.

You maybe wondering why it's one hour earlier. Master always give the false messages when it comes to something really private between me and him. That's our secret code. Just like when he told me to shop groceries for him, he actually wanted alcohols. When he told me a time for meeting, the actual time must be one hour earlier. Yeah, you can figure out that the Veloo Plaza is a lie as well.

I feel so guilty for Aurora. She's now sleeping soundly, next to my bed. Even though I'm gonna off to search for Trafalgar Law, she's still one of the most important person in my life. Should I send my regards to her by writing letters in the future? No, I'm not a considerate one, she knows that too. Writing letter is something girlish and goose bumpers. Heck no.

I let out a yawn, and fall asleep again. The only thing that tickles my mind, will everything go on as I planned?

* * *

_"Master." _I call out as I reach the Guardian Hall.

_"Come, I will walk you to the port. They will be there by 6.30, am I right?"_ Master's holding a bag, it can be wines, beers, champagnes...

_"Yeah." _I clutch my duffel bag tightly. My sword is bundled up by long iron chain at my waist. I'm wearing my knight's uniform, but I took off all the badges. I'm no longer under world government's affiliation, not a knight who serves for people anymore since I got into a pirate's path. I'll miss the academy, as I had spent more than 10 years in it. My resignation has already approved by principal with a little help from master, as the principal felt quite depressed for losing an excellent knight. We didn't mention anything about pirate. _Shh..._

_"I'm proud to have a student like you, Valerie."_

_"Thank you, master. "_

_"You're not very talkative, but I like young lady like you. You have enough money with you?"_

I don't know why master's asking silly questions all of a sudden. I do have money with me. And if I don't have any, I can snatch people's money for I'm officially a pirate now. _"I have 568000 beri with me."_ My principal gave me allowance weekly, and I lied to him that I'm going for student exchange program in East Blue, he gave me another 500000 beri.

_"It's a gift from me. Take it." _That's what he said.

Master and I reach the port 10 minutes earlier. I think of sight-seeing. The ocean is waiting for me. I see the way that sunlight skips over the surface of water and filters into the depths below, lighting up the darkness. I keep my eyes close, inhaling air with salty smell. I'm unaware of the presence of other workers at the port. My master does the same thing. Seeing this as the last moment be with him, we start chatting about my plan.

_"Who's coming to fetch you?"_

_"My cousin, Exile. You know him." _

_"Hah, that hot-headed kid. He knows that you're going to be a pirate or not?"_

_"Nah, how could I possibly tell him that? He's a true knight who stands for justice. I used him 'cause he has relation with world government."_

_"Does it has anything to do with you?"_

_"You'll see." _

_"Hmm... Valerie, that skill I had taught you... Promise me, use it only if fighting is totally out of option." _Master brings up some serious issue that we seldom discuss.

_"Hoho... that skill? I promise. It's not a skill that one can simply show to others." _

_"Will you eat devil fruit if you get one?"_

_"I don't know. Eating any devil fruit will put myself at a risk. Better be power that energizes my fencing skills." _I swift my eyes as I say this. What will it be... to be unable to swim for the rest of your life? _Kairoseki _will get into my way too. I make a face for the thought of it.

_"Hahaha... Here, take this, a good-luck gift for you." _Master hands the bag to me.

_"What is this? You're giving alcohols to me?" _Do pirates drink alcohols to celebrate everyday?

_"No, open it later. Hope you'll like it. I got it from the New World."_ Master gives me a mysterious smile.

_"Wow... no regrets?" _

_"No."_

Then, we hear the huge waves are breaking on the shore. A marine ship is coming closer and closer. On the deck, I see Exile waving happily at us. I wave back without thinking much.

Hell yeah. I'm going aboard a marine ship. The fastest way to get to the Grand Line by crossing the Calm Belt.


	4. Chapter 4

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

* * *

After having short farewell with master and Exile, and pleaded Exile to look after Aurora, I take a glance around the marine ship. There are about fifty marines, standing aside in two lines on the deck. Hearing a short siren, the ship begins it voyage.

Two marines come to me and bow. One has pink color hair and wears bandanna across his forehead with glasses. One wears a pale green vest and a purple pants, and a rather odd-looking pair of sunglasses.

_"I'm Coby and this's Helmeppo. We're your guards and will ensure your safety. The weather is fine and there will be no rain according to the weather forecast. We estimated that this ship will reach East Blue in seven hours, smoothly." _The one with pink color hair makes a polite introduction, which I don't give a damn.

_"Oh, it's that so? Then I assume you're ready to take my orders?" _I say in a low voice.

_"Yes,"_ Helmeppo replies, then he adds, _"it's our mission."_

_"Good," I say, "now command the captain to change the direction. We're heading to the Calm Belt."_

_"What?" _Their eyes widen in just the way I expected, _"I thought you're supposed to be sent for student..."_

_"Not anymore," _I interrupt them impatiently, _"I need to get to the Grand Line, so head to the Calm Belt now. How many times do I have to repeat?"_

_"This is insane!" _Helmeppo exclaims. I can feel that the ship's changing it direction. Nice one. I don't want my time to be wasted.

_"Yeah, whatever," _I roll my eyes, _"what I do next just take it as an aberrant behavior." _I laugh.

_"What do you mean?" _Coby asks with a nervous tone.

What do I mean? I'll just show him by action. Well done is better than well said.

I walk slowly to the marines who are queuing stupidly and smile at the first marine. Okay, I swear I saw him blushed. I bet he had never been stared straightly by a girl before.

But he got the situation wrong. For your information, I'm a 26-year-old. The good things about 26-year-old is that you're not 16-year-old. Sixteen goes with the word _sweet_, and I'm so far from sweet.

I draw my sword, and cut savagely at the heads of the first ten marines in a blink of eye. Before they can react, I drive my sword into the chest for the rest in the first line and finish them off. Blood splatter everywhere except on my uniform. Yeah, I've got it right, and the weather forecast can't be trusted. It's a heavy downpour of blood.

I jerk my head to another line. Well, there's no line anymore after the marines have witnessed what had happened to their comrades. Bingo, I knew it. I'm just a noble with lower rank and they would not give extra protection to me and so they didn't prepare any weapons. _Tenryubito _is the major noble which is significant one. They knew that pirates would not simply mess with marines by seeing a marine ship. Jumping into the sea seems to be a smart action at the time. That should be a lesson to them. I swing my sword to get rid of the blood on it, then I retract it to the iron chain.

Coby and Helmeppo are kneeling before the bodies which are soaked with blood. Their legs are so weak that I can see them trembling and they can't move an inch as I'm getting closer to them.

_"Please... spare your mercy, don't kill us!" _Coby holds his head with both of his hands.

_"JEEZ I DON'T WANNA DIE HERE! SHE'S MORE TERRIBLE AND HORRIBLE THAN MY DAD!" _I think Helmeppo's starting to talk crap which I don't understand.

_"Who told you that I'm going to kill you? Stand up, right now! If you don't do what I say, I'm happy to cut your throat."_

_"Then why did you kill them just now?"_

_"I'm strong and fifty marines to be my bodyguard is an insult to me. A captain who pilots the ship and two marines, just more than enough. Some people are like clouds. When they disappear, it's a brighter day."_

I don't like to talk much, especially to some guys who keep on getting in my nerve. And it feels like forever to explain things to others. Sigh, I blame my aggressiveness when it comes to fighting. That ought to add some extra to my bounty, I guess.

_"Listen up, you guys just have to guard this ship till we reach Grand Line. After that, I will leave this ship. I dare you to report this incidents to you admiral or whoever you want to. Well, you may not let the cat out of the bag if you want to. Just guard this ship and I will spare your life."_ So much for my saliva.

_"What business you have in Grand Line?"_

_"I'm going to find Trafalgar Law." _I say, with brightening face. I have this strong avid to see him as soon as possible.

_"Huh? That notorious captain of the Heart Pirate-Trafalgar Law, with 200 million bounty?"_

I give him a stern look,_ "crap, every pirate is notorious, evil, better-be-off-to-hell to you marines."_

_"What makes you want to see him?"_

_"A life for a life. To catch him, and kill him, of course. That's the actual program my academy offered." _I smirk as I lie.

Aurora was wrong about me. If there was Lying, I would get an A+, for sure.


	5. Chapter 5

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: For Valerie, not me :p**

**camierose: Thx, glad you like it :D**

* * *

Me, Coby and Helmeppo are sitting together in a circle on the deck while waiting for the captain which was forced by me to cook for us. He set the ship into auto mode and rushed to the kitchen instantly. I don't know whether he'll put poison in the food secretly or not. I did no harm to him, so he shall not too. I hope so.

The wind is definitely chilly today. I should have worn a heavier coat. Coby look cold too. He's keeping his arm folded across his chest. Helmeppo's face is deadly pale. Let's just say that they do not feel well with the scenery... of dead bodies of marines. To be honest, I feel nothing looking at those corpses. Somehow I take it as a work of my masterpiece.

I get the bag which master gave to me and open it. I can't see clearly what's in the bag. Frustrated, I hold the end of the bag and let the item in it to be dropped out. It turns out to be many items instead of one, including a sword. Coby shrieks as he sees the sword. Gee whiz, he himself has weapon with him too...

Weirdo master with his weirdo secret code again obviously. But I don't hate it. In fact, I love it, I can never get enough of his childish prank, it makes me feel normal with his fetish.

The sword seems exclusive, with dark blue and golden strips on the hilt. Is this one of the master's collection? By noticing there's a small note attached to it, I pull it off and read it.

_Hold the sword and speak "Transform!" with full confidence._

Seeing one side of the deck is filled with blood that had dried up, I walk to another side. I can sense that Coby and Helmeppo are staring at me. Maybe they're worried I'll do something horrible and terrifying that their hearts are not strong to withstand it.

I point the sword straightly to the front with a forward stance. I yell out :_"Transform!"_

The sword begins to change its form. Strongly built, compact, elegant, thick mane and tail. It's a white Andalusian horse, which is highly prized by the nobility. The noblest horse in the world, the most beautiful that can be. Wait, something ticks me from my imaginary world back to the reality. A sword that can turn into a horse? Is this one of the high technology in the New World, which can combine the sword with the devil fruit?

Coby screams, _"Miss Valerie! How come there's a horse here?"_

_"EEKKKKK! What did you actually learn from your academy? Witchcraft?" _Helmeppo says in an anxious tone.

I touch the horse and pat its muzzle. _"I shall name you Shiloh," _Shiloh replies me with a soft neigh. I can't stop myself from grinning. I'm happy, overwhelmed. I'm going to buy a saddle soon.

_"Transform!"_ Shiloh disappears and a sword falls to the surface. Feeling content, I pick it up and walk back to where I sat before.

_"It's the power of devil fruit, horse horse fruit." _I explain to Coby and Helmeppo upon seeing their frightened expression. They let out a sigh of relief and laugh. Witchcraft? Nonsense.

Next it's a pile of papers wrapped in scroll using a thread. I untied the knot and the papers fall in messes. I'm too astonished to speak. I can feel my face blushes by flipping through the papers one by one. They're all Trafalgar Law's bounty posters. Speechless... Stupid master with his stupid prank.

Coby speaks in excitement:_ "Wow I didn't know you wanted to kill him that much that you ripped of most of his bounty posters in your town, am I right?"_

_"..." _

NO YOU'RE NOT RIGHT BUT YOU'RE VERY WRONG MY MASTER DID THIS ON PURPOSE WHAT THE HELL HE ACTUALLY THOUGHT THAT SEEING LAW'S PICTURE WILL MAKE ME FEEL BETTER BEFORE I MEET HIM THIS IS RIDICULOUS I FEEL THAT I'M SOME KIND OF _HENTAI _OH MY GOD WHAT WILL HE THINK OF ME IF HE KNOWS THAT I KEEP HIS PICTURE WITH ME WILL HE LAUGH AT ME NO EVEN WORSE HE'LL ACCUSE ME OF INTRUDING HIS PRIVACY BUT THERE'S NOTHING PRIVATE TO DO WITH BOUNTY POSTER IT'S ALREADY EXPOSED TO THE WORLD HAHAHAHAHA THEN WHAT SHALL I DO WITH THESE POSTERS BURN THEM OR TEAR THEM INTO PIECES AND THROW THEM INTO THE SEA OR FEED THEM TO COBY AND HELMEPPO BUT NO IT'S TRAFALGAR LAW'S POSTER TRAFALGAR LAW TRAFALGAR LAW TRAFALGAR LAW TRAFALGAR LAW TRAFALGAR LAW TRAFALGAR LAW TRAFALGAR LAW TRAFALGAR LAW SOMEBODY TELL ME WHAT TO DO

I bury my face into my palms. Awkward. I tie them back with the thread and stuff it into the bag without saying another word.

Master also gave me a revolver, with a package of bullets for refill, a champagne with hard bottle that didn't make it crack when it dropped out,

and a book which entitled: _The Templars: The Dramatic History of the Knights Templar, the Most Powerful Military Order of the Crusades._ Come to think of it, I never had any books that are relevant to fighting. Maybe it's time for me to purchase some, or steal some_ (even snatch some) _as my collection.

After finish eating, we clean all the dead bodies by sweeping them into the sea water to prevent crows or seagulls or flies for having meal and that would be something disgusting and would affect my appetite. Hey, I got A for Hygienic.

_"Will you serve under world government after you graduate? I think you will be promoted to a higher rank for capture such problematic pirate rookie. You have excellent fighting skills." _Helmeppo asks.

_"Maybe... I'll see first. What's important is, I want to take down his head and earn that 200 million beri. "_

I'd never understood how I could lie so often and so easily. But just like anything else, lying becomes easier the more you do it.


	6. Chapter 6

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it. :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: The dog of Mr.4 and Miss Merry Christmas is weirder.**

**Girl-luvs-manga: I'm really happy you like it :D**

* * *

Coby and Helmeppo are kinda... kind-hearted? No, busybody is more like it. They insisted on sending me face-to-face for Trafalgar Law. We're now somewhere in Grand Line, it's pretty fast and smooth traveling in marine ship.

After doing some research by reading maps of ocean and calculating the ship's position, I know that we're very close to Trafalgar Law that Coby called the marine headquarters with _den den mushi_ to find out the island before he left and created haywire there. The problem is, the marine ship is too fast and by the fourth day we had reached an island ahead of him. We can't tell whether his log pose will bring him to this island or not.

I force Coby and Helmeppo to leave me alone that I want to stay on this island for some physical training. Seeing the island is covered up with rainforest and not knowing the any creatures on this island, they tell me no 'cause they'll be guilty if anything happen to me. It looks like they have mistaken I as their ally to kill a pirate for them. And so I threaten them to leave or I shall make them on my to-be-killed list. In the end, they agree to say goodbye and promise me that they will lend me a hand if I'm in trouble. I roll my eyes and mutter: _"Whatever."_

It's well worth making a detour around this island. I had killed three lions and two gigantic birds with unknown species, though it's useless job as I have no strength to carry them and cook them and eat them and digest them.

The different sounds and smells of the forest can't be escaped from me. I had trained to interpret any movements in surroundings using all senses. I hear a snake's hissing, between the bushes that are in the forest. I draw my sword and wait.

The snake glides very quickly at me that I have to jump up in the air and swing my sword to counter-attack. It's a large white snake with large pink spots running down its body, and... it wears a horned skull. Adjusting my vision, I see it has blue hair jutting out from the back of skull. It hisses at me but not scarily. I hold my sword in position and wait for it to attack.

"_Don't you dare to hurt my pet Salome!" _A woman's voice comes from the woods.

There she walks out. Man, she's gorgeous, and I think she's older than me, thirty-something at least, but sexy as hell. Like some kind of goddess with her straight black hair and blue eyes. And the legs on her... If I'm a man, I would surely drooling over her. But she's a woman and so I am.

And she's a _Shichibukai_, Boa Hancock. Why on earth a shichibukai is here on a deserted island?

She sprints towards me and tries to kick to my face and I dodge it successfully. She's astonished but happy at the same time. We both are using the same power, _haki._

She chases me around the island but I don't want to waste too much of energy on this fight so I kick back to resist her kick and make her fall down. Instantly, I immobilize her on the beach by thrusting my sword on her attire near her neck into the sand. I have no intention to kill her, and I pull out my sword and attach it back to the iron chain. Then, I turn my back on her and walk away.

"_Wait! Why didn't you kill me?" _She demands.

"_..." _I had no reason to do that 'cause I know you're just testing my skills. But in replying that will definitely hurt her feelings. And so I make the lamest excuse:_ "Cause you're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen," _I continue on my walking.

"_How about we become sisters?"_ I hear her yells behind.

Seriously?

* * *

"_Hahaha... I can't believe you actually got lost after escaping from the assembly of Shichibukai from the marine headquarters!" _I laugh and hit my kneecap after listening to Hancock's story.

"_Don't judge me you evil girl! I can't believe you actually used marine to come into Grand Line! Not bad..." _Hancock says in a laugh.

"_It's not that I'm evil, they were the ones who were stupid!"_

"_Totally agree! All men are stupid, idiot, pervy, stinky..."_

"_No I do not agree with you!"_

"_Okay, except for your Trafalgar guy! Hahahaha..."_

"_He's not mine."_

Both of us remain silence. Salome's happy wiggling its body beside Boa Hancock. Boa Hancock, the _Shichibukai_, the _Kaizoku Jotei_, had just acknowledged me as her sister. Is this real? Just because I'm strong and I praised her beauty?

Odd to say but I'm glad she likes the champagne my master gave to me and we finished it together. We also had dinner from the preys I hunt down earlier. Now we're in a high mood scolding the marines we hate (_though they helped me cause they were deceived) _together_. _

"_Listen up Valerie, even though you and that Trafalgar were good together when you were young, be sure to open your eyes and see him clear. Don't be deceived by your memory, men suck."_

"_Oh will you just shut up and keep that theory with you?"_

"_No I'm not gonna shut up unless my ship comes to take me back to Amazon Lily."_

"_Speak of the devil. I think that's your ship."_

In the middle of ocean, there's a big ship draw by two large sea serpents. Boa Hancock gets up from the ground immediately.

"_Yo sis, so long then. Till we meet again, or you shall come and visit me in the Amazon Lily but no man is allowed including your Trafalgar. Oh, thanks for the dinner and champagne too," _She shows me her beautiful smile.

"_Welcome, we're pirates. By the way, I told you he's not mine,"_ I smile back.

"_Take good care of yourself then. You could be in danger on this island even if you're strong that you're a girl."_

"_Don't worry, I'll be fine. I ain't that weak."_

After she leaves, I summon Shiloh out to be my guard. And I fall asleep immediately.

* * *

The next morning, Shiloh wakes me up with his usual neigh. He then directs his head to two ends of the beach. I rub my eyes and yawn and focus my sight. I see a pirate's ship... wait, is that a ship? Looks more like a ferry. I jerk my head to another end.

Shit. A marine ship. I never expect Coby would report them so fast. Are they here to capture me? I quickly summon Shiloh back to sword and run for hideout. But then I hear marine's scream.

"_Miss Valerie! We're here to help you capture that Trafalgar Law! We heard that you got to the same island with him this morning! Don't let him escape!" _

What?! He's... here?


	7. Chapter 7

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it. :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: You're right HAHAHA**

**fangirl-4-evEr-xx: Thx for reading it. You rock too xD**

* * *

I have no idea what Coby and Helmeppo had reported to the headquarter, judging from the situation, things surely go wrong.

Like, the sun rose from west this morning? Did Jesus meet Buddha? Is the sky going to rain red? I don't know. What I know is... marines are out of their mind. No matter how fast I run, they just won't stop chasing me. I should have declared to Coby and Helmeppo about my identity as a pirate.

_"Miss Valerie! Have you found him?"_

_No! I didn't even see him!_ I scream internally.

_"Miss Valerie! How long do we have to run to reach him?"_

_Just stop chasing me and you can stop running you dumbos!_

Should I run into the forest to lose their sight of me? Or should I just go for Trafalgar Law and warn him about this ridiculous action of marines? Gah, chasing is so much easier than being chased because it requires no strategy. And now I'm being chased. Thousands of plots run across my mind. Come on come on... there's gotta be a way out...

I run into an orang solid and fall to the ground. Ouch, it hurts. I look up. Wow. A white bear's wearing an orange jumpsuit. It stares at me for awhile and jerks his head to the direction of the marines. It seems that the bear can figure out what's going on and it turns its back on me and runs, heading to the ship which looks like a ferry.

NO~~~~~~ Cute bear please come back! I need you!

_"Stop, please!" _I yell at the bear and pray hard that it understands my talking.

_"You're talking to me, miss?" _The bear comes back to me. What? It not only understands my talking but it can talk too!

_"You can talk?" _I ask with a tentative smile.

_"Sumimasen." _The bear seems depressed all of a sudden.

_"Why you're apologizing? Hey, are you a pirate too?" _I know this is out of the topic, but he's kinda cute with that depressed look.

_"Yes."_

_"Who's your captain?"_

_"Trafalgar Law."_

OH MY GOD OH MY GOD HE'S REALLY HERE AND I'M GOING TO MEET HIM SOON WILL HE ACCEPT ME AS HIS TEAM'S MEMBER OTHER THAN THIS BEAR HE HAS WHO AS HIS MEMBER URGH IS THERE ANY WOMAN IN HIS TEAM THERE SHOULD BE A FEW BY LOOKING AT HIS BOUNTY POSTER HE'S WAY TOO HOT WHAT AM I GONNA DO

_"The bear's Trafalgar Law's crew mate! Fire!" _A marine's voice drag my soul back to the reality. The bear carries me on his back and runs. He has fast reflex that he dodges all the shooting from the marines.

_"Hey cute bear what's your name?" _I ask.

_"Bepo." _His face turns red and I feel like wanna hug him. Come to think of it, I never had a teddy bear in my entire life. Because I hate them for they cannot speak, walk, or do anything but just sitting there and looking at you with their big eyes. And, normal girls love them. And I think it's stupid for hugging a teddy bear that will never reply your love for it. I love animals that are real. Same goes to Shiloh. But Shiloh doesn't talk, I don't mind that anyway as long as he neighs like a horse.

_"Bepo, where are you taking me to?" _Bepo's quite fast. The marines are no longer in my view as I turn my head.

_"To my captain."_

_"Is your captain a good guy?"_

_"He is. For me. Not for marines."_

_"Hahaha... Of course marines hate pirates like us. I like you, and maybe I'll like your captain." _

_"Thank you. My captain will like you too." _Bepo replies with a smile.

Oh shit I can feel my face becomes hotter. For some reason, I'm worried that Trafalgar Law will not recognize me as we had no seen each other for... fifteen years... I could recognize him easily from the poster due to his fur hat that he wore it since he was a child. And those eyes with faint shadows... I'll never go wrong.

* * *

_"Faster! Miss Valerie is in danger! That bear carries her away!"_

In... danger? How can they possibly be so idiotic? Are marines trained to be fitted physically only? Don't tell me they only use their mind for memorizing fleet admiral's name, admirals' names, vice admirals' names, blah blah blah, and also pirates' names and their bounty. Duh.

We reach the ship in no time. The ship is quite odd-looking, which is yellow in color. I ask Bepo to put me down and get away from my fighting range. He does whatever I say and rushes to the ship, to inform his captain about the marines, I guess.

I draw my swords in position, wondering how nice the sword that master gave me can be as I never use it to fight before. And there comes the marines.

_"Miss Valerie! Did you kill the bear? Hooray! Now's Trafalgar Law's turn!"_

I send out my angry stare.

_"Nitoryu... Deadly Performance: Extinguish!" _I slash all the marines in one shot. They scream in pain together, and fall to the ground, and never get up, of course. I pant heavily. This skill is exhausting as it always be.

_"Capoferro Valerie," _says a deep male's voice behind me.

I turn around to see who had called my name.

My heart skips a beat. It's exactly who I hope it will be.

Trafalgar Law. And he did recognize me.


	8. Chapter 8

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Childhood lovers is more like it, Valerie won't admit it for sure xD**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: The cutest bear ever :D**

**P.s. Sorry but I will be having the most important exam in my entire life starting on next week and it lasts for a month! I promise I will update as much as I can! Thanks for your support :)**

* * *

Do you know what hell is? I do.

It's not fire and brimstone. Not for me, anyway. It's watching your hopes die.

It's watching the one you love- the one who reads bedtime stories to you every night; cooks your favorite dishes; holds you in her arms when you're insomnia for having nightmares, dying in front of you.

It's seeing your father- a man you believed was a superhero- for the first time after ten long years only to discover he was a dishonorable creep show all along.

Hell is experiencing both of those things in one night. And I experienced it when I was ten.

My father was a doctor, a great one. But I called him "the irresponsible one". He could leave my mom on her sick bed to an emergency surgery for the _tenryubito_, to a meeting for his promotion of nobility rank. I forgave him, 'cause I could look after my mom, which any child could do it for their mom.

Whenever teachers asked about our ambition, a reply of _"Doctor!" _would make me hate whoever dare to answer that. Trafalgar Law was one of them. I would mock them for how cruel they will become like my father, how they will become someone who's eviler than criminals. They would cry, complain to teachers about me for ruined their dreams. Except for Trafalgar Law.

Trafalgar Law would just shrug and say: _"Whatever." _cause he was truly evil. He would catch frogs everyday for dissection. And took their organs out and put them into others' lunchbox for they bullied him before. So, we became good friends to bully classmates together.

But I will never forgive my dad for leaving my mom after the car accident, she could have survived. And he left us, until my mom had her last breathe. I was a ten-year-old, on the verge of dying too, desperate to do anything to save my mom but all I did was watching her dying. Passers-by found _den den mushi_ on her and called dad, and he refused to come 'cause he was performing another surgery for Lord Mayor.

_"How about the hospital? Call the number!"_

_"It's no use! She's already dead! Oh my goodness..."_

Passers-by couldn't see me. I cursed the horse for crashing me and making me flew into the bushes, but I could see my mom lying in the middle of the road. I sobbed.

_"Who's there?"_ I heard a boy's voice, which was familiar.

_"Trafalgar... Law?" _It was already dark outside and he was catching frogs by the pond? Ha, so much for a ten-year-old.

_"Oh shit Capoferro-ya, why you're bleeding so much? Can you move?" _He put down his tools for frog-catching and hurried to me.

_"I can't. I think my ribs are hurt," _I said.

_"Hang on. I'll carry you to the hospital."_

_"Are you crazy? The hospital is like... two streets away from here!"_

_"So what?"_

He carried me on his back and rushed immediately. I held my arms tightly around him. My vision became blur. I felt tired... exhausting... and the blood over me is sticky. Yuck.

* * *

He made it to hospital. And there came another big problem.

_"What? I have to pay for her surgery?" _I overheard Trafalgar Law's conversation with the doctor.

_"Yes, our blood bank is currently running low the same type of blood for her. Plus, we have others V.I.P. are waiting for their surgery too."_

Shit. Trafalgar Law has brought me to my dad's hospital. The wrong one. The money-sucking hospital.

_"...How about I donate my blood to her?"_ Trafalgar Law spoke after few seconds of silence.

_"What? Trafalgar, cut... this off! You're... insane!" _I panted heavily. I was still holding on him on his back. My blood has soaked into his coat.

_"Are you sure kiddo? Underage are not allowed to donate blood."_ The doctor frowned.

_"I'm willing to do so NOW TAKE MY BLOOD AND PROCEED THE SURGERY!"_

And I fell into coma. That was the last sentence I heard.

* * *

I have slept for one week after the surgery. When I woke up, I saw Trafalgar Law sleeping on the edge of my bed, holding my hand. I moved my fingers, and that woke him up.

_"Oh, you finally gain your consciousness, Capoferro-ya." _He smiled at me.

"_...Did you donate your blood for me?"_

"_Yeah... luckily we share the same type of blood."_

"_How much have you donated?"_

"_Five..."_ He hesitated.

"_What?" _

"_500cc ."_

"_Idiot! You should have fainted!" _I yelled at him.

"_I did faint. For two days. And after I woke up, I straightly came to you."_

"_I see you now have dark circles, is that because of you looked after me?"_

"_Think so."_

"_Urgh... Thank you."_

"_Welcome, I guess."_

"_How can I repay you?"_

"_Don't know. It all depends on you."_

I thought of my mom's bedtime stories all of a sudden.

"_Hey, you know, back in the day, when a guy saved a Princess's life, she would reward him with a kiss."_

"_Err... yeah?"_

"_Come closer."_

_"I don't simply take orders from..."_

_"Just come closer."_

I planted a kiss on his cheek. And he hugged me.

"_Glad you're alive, Capoferro-ya. You can repay me in the future if you want to."_

_"How?"_

_"Be my assistant."_

_"...But I don't want to become a nurse." _I frowned.

_"Not necessary a nurse. Just be someone that can assist me."_

_"Deal." _I hugged him back.

* * *

Believe it or not, he came to the hospital every day, for a whole month, taking care of me. I was deeply touched. He will become a different doctor than the others, even if he was evil... a tiny bit. But he was willing to sacrifice for me. Imagine that five hundred cc of blood...

After the accident, I turned eleven, my dad sent me to stupid girls' school for nobility education, which made me suffer through that two years, and I got to be separated from Trafalgar Law.

And I enrolled the Royal Academy of Knights by fourteen.

And I never see him again.

And now, he's standing in front of me.

My life-saver, the first doctor I've ever acknowledged.


	9. Chapter 9

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Err... if you watch the anime you'll see that Law has this habit of calling anyone by their surname ends with "ya"**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: Thank you. Here's the new chapter :D**

**Dhalmi93: Thanks, I will keep on writing for the sake of Law xD**

**camierose: Thankx for your support, and your review as well :)**

* * *

_"Everyone! This, is Capoferro Valerie." _Trafalgar Law begins after all his crewmates assemble in front of us. I can't actually believe that he uses a submarine to travel, but it's okay. I have got used to his weirdness since I knew him. He even recruited a talking bear, which I'm so happy with. He's now standing behind two guys. By looking at those cutesy eyes, I have to restrict myself not to go and hug him.

_"Wow, a woman! Hey lady you fancy a date with me?" _A guy who wears a blue hat comes close to me and... I don't know. You call this... flirt? I don't want to disappoint him so I throw him a smile and he faints straight away. _Seriously?_

_"Captain Law, is she our crewmate now?" _Another guy who wears a hat with the word "PENGUIN" asks Trafalgar Law with excited tone.

Trafalgar Law narrows his eyes. _"I would like to see first if you all can get along with her and she can get along with you all, I'll take her as my subordinate as well," _he says as he drops his eyes on me, _"I'll be in my room for awhile, then I'll see the outcomes," _he adds.

Bepo's smiling at me with his sharp teeth exposed. Maybe he does welcome me to join the team.

_"Okay, I have no problem with that."_ I reassure him with a slight nod.

I watch him walk towards his room. He stops moving and turns around.

_"Capoferro-ya. Hand me your coat." _His expression softens.

_"What? What do you want to do with my coat?"_ Even though I say this, I obey him by taking off my coat and toss it at him. The iron chain which attached to my waist produces sound. He catches my coat and folds it nicely .

_"Don't worry, I'll not do any harm to it. By the way, you have a nice body." _He chuckles as he closes the door.

_"..." What kind of compliment that is? _I roll my eyes after I scowl at him.

* * *

So... Penguin and Shachi and Bepo sit around me as I explain my card game to them.

_"This cards... total 60. You can play any card games you want. It's a gift bought in the New World. Just say the game you want to play and the cards will change their forms and turn into the card game you wish for. For example, when I say 'Poker Card', it will take few seconds for it to change form and the first card will always be the Rules and Regulations. See?" _I show them the deck of cards I have on my palms.

_"Wow... cool. " _Shachi draws a card and flips it over. It's an 8 of Diamonds.

_"If we can play any games... I want to play a game of Captain Law!" _Penguin yells.

_"Huh? Game about Trafalgar Law?" _I stare at him with disbelief. Soon, the cards start to change form and the Rules and Regulations change too.

_Rules and Regulations_

_-Do not play this game with Captain Law around._

_-The one who has the lamest answer shall be thrown into _

_the sea water by others._

_-The one who has successfully make others laugh_

_with one's answer will be the safest._

_"Oh yes! Captain Law is not here!" _Bepo screams out and then covers his mouth, _"Oops..."_

_"No worries, I think he didn't hear it. Shall we start the game?" _Penguin is really eager for this card game. And I'm really eager to throw someone into the sea.

_"Okay... I have never played this kind of game before..."_ I take out the first card and shuffle the rest of it. Then I draw a card out.

_Question 29_

_What is the thing that Captain Law hate the most?_

HOW THE HELL I'M SUPPOSED TO KNOW WHAT HE HATES THE MOST BUT WAIT THE RULES SAY YOU HAVE TO GIVE THE FUNNIEST ANSWER LEMME THINK LEMME THINK

_"Penguin and Shachi HAHAHA"_ Bepo laughs as it's the funniest answer he got.

_"Women." _Penguin says shortly.

_"Heck if he hates women he would not bring Valerie to our ship you dumb." _Bepo gives Penguin a punch on his back.

_"Didn't you remember the last time he scolded by the fat woman?" _Penguin punches him back.

_"Maybe... coconut?" _Shachi answers with a dreamy tone.

_"Coconut?" _I wonder loudly.

And three of them laugh together until all of them lying on the floor, banging the floor. Tears pouring out from their eyes too. _Coconut?_

_"So what's your answer, Valerie?" _Shachi asks with tears trailing off his eyes.

_"He hates... to be ordered around..." _It's a matter of fact.

Conclusion, Bepo got the lamest answer and so he ends up in the sea and then crawls back to the submarine. Hahaha. But it took us a long time to carry him up as you know Bepo is erhem erhem...

Shachi's turn to draw the card.

_Situation 15_

_You wake up and you see Captain Law standing there, holding_

_a few of your internal organs, what would you do?_

_P.s. You are still alive anyway._

_"Force him to eat them up hahaha!" _Wow... Shachi dares to say that just because he got scared that Bepo keeps staring at us. One lame answer and you're down.

_"Ask him to throw them to Shachi and Penguin's faces." _Shit, Bepo is really angry... not at me.

_"Challenge him to do operation to set them back in my body!" _says Penguin.

_"Ten kisses for each organ,"_ I close my eyes as I say this. Three of them begin to _"OOOHHH"_ and _"AHHHH"_. Shachi has the lamest answer and he's the second victim.

Bepo's turn to draw the card.

_Question 6_

_What is the funniest thing that happened to Captain Law?_

_"The coconut!" _Shachi repeats and laughs together with Penguin and Bepo.

_"What's with the coconut?" _I ask with a confused look over my face.

_"Okay, since Valerie is our soon-to-be crewmate, we should tell her this story,"_ Penguin says with a laugh,_ "Captain Law's devil fruit power is he can separate or spatially displace anything inside a space he created. Got that?"_

_"Yeah? And then?" _

_"He once wanted to displace a bomb shot by a marine with a coconut but he forgot to catch the coconut and the coconut hit into his face HAHAHAHA..." _This time is my turn to laugh like hell.

_"My answer is... Captain Law's first time drown into the sea!" _Penguin answers confidently. He successfully makes Bepo and Shachi laugh but not me... as I never saw him drown before...

_"When Captain Law's shouting: 'I don't take orders from you!'" _Bepo imitates Trafalgar Law's voice as he says this. We laugh together at once.

_"So... Valerie?"_

_"Emm... I was his classmates... and he liked to catch frogs... One day, he couldn't make it to keep the frog inside his bag so he hid it... in his pants..." _I try very hard to keep myself from laughing but seriously, I can't.

_"WOW SUCH FASCINATING STORY ABOUT CAPTAIN WHAT HE DID NEXT?"_

_"He kept moving uneasy on his chair and so teacher saw him and he told teacher... his excretory organ was itchy..." _I stop for a laugh, then I continue,_ "but he kept checking inside his pants and eventually the teacher went to him and...voila! A frog magically appeared out of his itchy crotch!" _

Another long laughing to go... Suddenly, Trafalgar Law comes out from his room and I quickly hide my cards by tossing them into my bag.

_"So... I can assume you guys got along well?" _I see my coat in his hand.

_"Yeah."_ We press our lips into a smooth line to restrain ourselves from bursting into laughter.

_"Capoferro-ya. Here's your coat. Welcome to the Heart Pirates. I'm your captain from now on, you can call me Captain Law." _He shows me his impish smile which stunts me for a second and hands my coat to me.

I turn my coat to see the back of it. Oh gosh. He had sewn the jolly roger of Heart Pirates on it. I'm too astonished to speak.

_"Thank you, Captain Law." _I grins at him. Oh well, just let the thought of coconut gets off my mind for this moment.

By some miracle, he shows me his smile, and goes straight for my heart.

_"Glad to have you as my crewmate, Capoferro-ya." _He waves at me as he walking back to his room.

I stare at the jolly roger. Then, something tickles my mind.

_"Trafalgar Law! Did you use your surgeon needle to sew it?" _

And there goes the bang of the door.


	10. Chapter 10

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely inventions.**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: I plotted the storyline in the middle of exam xD**

**Girl-luvs-manga: What flashback?**

* * *

The weather stays fine till night, same goes to me and the Heart Pirates' crew. We are still on the same island, waiting for the Log Pose to complete its recording of the magnetic waves of the island.

The moon glows dimly, a cream disc suspends in the velvet sky. It casts silvery veil on me, lengthens my shadow as I'm on my feet to the deck. I take off my coat, hang it on the fence, sit down and enjoy the land breeze by the deck.

Oh, did I mention about my clothing before? My coat's length is just higher than my waist, with long sleeves and thick cuffs. Inside, I wear a plain casual shirt and a red waistband, with the shirt tails exposed below the waistband. The iron chain I use to attach my swords is clipped to the waistband. For legs, I wear black lantern pants which cover 3/4 of my thighs, and a pair of thigh-lengthen boots.

Listening to the footsteps that are coming nearer, I can guess that it's Law. Bingo. He takes my coat from the fence and throws it over my head. _"You should put this on," _he says.

_"I prefer not to do so. This submarine is pretty swelter inside. Poor Bepo. He had to be trapped inside for long hours if you had to travel deep down the sea and surely he would go dehydrated, am I right?" _I snort at him, refuse to put on my coat.

_"Clever. But don't show your body like that. You're a woman, and this crew is full with men. Just as I said, you have a nice body," _he takes the seat beside me.

_"N...nice bo...body? Are you... a pervert...?" _I stammer, turning red.

_"No, I'm your captain," _he offers me a small grin, _"and you are my subordinate who's gonna help me to find One Piece."_

_"I sworn that earlier," _I sigh.

_"When?" _

_"When I was in the hospital. I sworn that I would assist you," _I raise an eyebrow, wondering if he had forgotten the promise.

_"Will you betray me?" _Law asks after taking a deep breath.

_"No. I got A+ for Loyalty," _I say with a laugh, revising the results I got. They're still crystal clear in my mind.

_"Loyalty? What was that?" _it's his turn to look skeptical.

_"Well... that was one of the important aspects they stressed us in the girls' school which I studied in before," _I answer.

_"How many aspects did they have?" _he asks.

_"Sixteen." _

_"Can you write it all down? And also with your knight's school one?" _Law seems to be curious for what I had done for the past fifteen years. Maybe I'll ask his later.

* * *

_Cresles Girls' School_

_-Acceptance (B+)_

_-Acting (C-)_

_-Culinary (A-)_

_-Dancing (C-)_

_-Dressage (A+)_

_-Etiquette (C-)_

_-Flexibility (A+)_

_-Hygienic (A)_

_-Integrity (A-)_

_-Knitting (C-)_

_-Language (A+)_

_-Loyalty (A+)_

_-Music (A)_

_-Patience (C-)_

_-Sagacious (A+)_

_-Science (A+)_

_Royal Academy of Knights_

_-History Studies of Knights (A+)_

_-Fencing, Fighting, Fortitude-3F (A+)_

_-Strategy and Tactic (A)_

_-Martial Art: Karate and Kendo (A+)_

_-Civic Duties (A)_

_"I think I'm now sympathizing you for the education your dad offered," _Law blurts out with a chuckle.

_"Nah... I was fine... except for the aspects I got Cs'... For nobles, at the age of eleven is when girls begin the lessons that will one day make them proper young women, and boys begin the lessons that will make them proper young men," _just the thought of the arranged marriage between nobles makes a strange cold hole in the part of my stomach.

_"You got Cs' for Acting, Dancing, Etiquette, Knitting, and Patience..." _

_"Yeah, ironically, they were the five top important aspects to define a damsel of noble..." _I mumble.

I remember how my dad used to scold at me after I told him Exile taught me fighting with swords. And I protested him and insisted to go for the knights' school, cause I didn't want to have endless lesson for how to walk, eat, talk, dance etc. in the right manners. I was a girl who had been looked down by other spoiled girls, who thought they were better than me in everything, including appearance. _Duh._ I didn't even have freckles, which they thought were sign of intelligent. In the end, I got more As', even with that five miserable Cs'.

_"If it was up to me, I don't think I will find a woman who's only good in acting, dancing, etiquette, knitting and patience. If she's good in acting, she'll cover my eyes if she lie to me... If she's good in dancing, other guys will drool over her when she dances alone... If she's good in etiquette, she'll never go for wild thoughts... If she's good in knitting, I don't even need someone to knit my clothes... If she's good in patience, I'll never have the chance to see her getting angry, which I think will be cute..." _Law softens his eyes, looking at me.

I can feel my heart racing. _"So?" _is all I manage to say.

_"I'll choose a girl who's good in culinary, dressage, flexibility, hygienic, integrity, language, loyalty, music, sagacious and science." _

OH SHIT NOT THAT GRIN AGAIN

_"..." Is he talking about me? _My heart pounds faster. But I keep staying still.

_"Time for sleep, Capoferro-ya. Or you want to change your shift with Penguin to do the patrol tonight?" _

Disappointed. He changes the subject suddenly.

_"No."_

_"Then go and sleep now. We might go and look around the island tomorrow, if the Log Pose hasn't done its recording," _he walks to his room slowly.

I look up to the moon in the sky, picking up my coat, then turn to my room, which is just located beside Law's room.


	11. Chapter 11

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it **

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: Well I have no intention to make him a perv…**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Even Valerie has no idea how romantic he is ;)**

* * *

Just as I have been woken by the sound of footsteps, I realize someone has intruded my room and I can feel the cool fingertips against my throat.

"_Don't ever think about screaming." _It's a male's voice that I can't recognize who the hell is the owner of the voice. But one thing I'm absolutely positive, he wants to strangle me to death but has no guts to do so. _HAHAHA._

My eyes have slowly get used to the darkness and focus more on the body above me. It's one of the marines which I killed off on the island. _"I never thought that you would still be in the land of living," _I mock.

"_Yeah, all thanks to you, Miss Valerie. But I'm not that stupid. You think that I couldn't decipher what have you done, aren't you?" _He holds my neck tighter, but I can still breathe. I clutch my bed sheet, trying to wipe those sweat off.

"_Decipher what?" _I feel disgusted for him beating about the bush.

"_I have already figured out that you would lose to Trafalgar Law. He's a pirate rookie that us marines cannot afford to take easy on him. And you, a female knight sent by your academy, being complacent of your skills, just seemed don't know how to grasp the nettle. You ended up forced by him to join his crew in order to save yourself, am I right?" _He snickers, as though pleased at himself for figuring me out… wrongly. Terribly wrong.

"…"

HOW LAME YOUR LOGIC IS OH MY GOD WHAT THE HELL WRONG IS WITH YOU MARINES NOWADAYS I JOINED THIS CREW WILLINGLY AND HE THINKS THAT I WAS THREATENED BY LAW DAMN IT HE IS THE ONE WHO IS THREATENING ME NOW ANOTHER THING I AM ABSOLUTELY POSITIVE THIS BASTARD HAS NO BRAIN HE SHOULD GO AND GET HIMSELF ONE FOR HIS OWN SAKE

He lifts a lock of my hair and sniffs at it delicately. _"You have a very nice smell. Shall we go into some discussions for helping you out of this musty ship?" _

My eyes widen. _So now he wants to get into some trouble, eh?_

As fast as lightning, I stretch my arm and grab my sword which is leaning against the bedside table. Jumping out from the bed, I push the marine down to the floorboard. The floorboard creaked and groaned loudly under our weight. I'm sitting on him, pointing my sword tip at his neck.

"_Be careful of what you say, imbecile! I'm easily provoked by people's stupidity which they try to act smart all the time, which means you too! Fits of delirium you have, I say!" _I snarl furiously, continue, _"you dare to look down on a female knight?"_

"_WHAT'S GOING ON?" _Law rushes into my room through the bathroom. Oh, almost forgot, Law's and my room are next to each other, with a bathroom in between. We share one bathroom, and now he uses this pathway as shortcut.

Need no explanation and he immediately figures out the situation. He swings his _nodaichi_ on his shoulder and pads toward us. _"You're not only dare to look down on a female knight, but you dare to lay your fingers on her? Capoferro-ya, get up. I'll finish him off. And you, you better fucking get up too. I'll bring you to meet your Maker."_

Is it delusion? I can see fire burning in his eyes.

Law drags him to the outside, follows behind the banging of the door is the hellish scream of the marines. Serves him right. Wait, Penguin is the one who patrol tonight, what happened to him? I sprint to the deck. Heck. He's just falls asleep.

"_I have checked the Log Pose. We can set off soon." _Says Law coolly.

"_Did you dump that bastard into the sea water?" _I raise my eyebrow.

"_Seems like both of us have the same mind," _Law chuckles. I titter. How can you stay mad at someone who makes you laugh?

* * *

Penguin ends up getting stuck with Law's lecture. I defend him, but getting scold along. Bepo snickers beside us, satisfied for indirect revenge by his captain. Then Bepo pats my head, _"Valerie, you should give that bastard a kick to his below part." _

"_Oh brother. He's dead, none of my business." _I'm pissed, but since Law finished him, I'm now exciting for traveling to the next island.

"_Bepo! Now's your turn to lay your fingers on her with no scruples?" _Law jerks his head at our direction.

* * *

The island we reach is an island called Armonny, a musical island. Everywhere is music. Just listening to the melodious rhythms makes my heart calms. Out of the blue, the residents on this island welcome us warmly and throw party for us. The mayor of the city greets us and leads us to his... castle?

"_Now before you pirates head to the next island have fun in Armonny! We have plenty of great musicians here. Enjoy the music all you can!" _Mr. Drenk, the mayor, says.

"_Mr Drenk, can I ask you a question?" _Curiosity kills a cat, not a human.

"_Why yes, my dear."_

"_We are pirates, is it okay for you to welcome us?"_

"_Of course! You want to know about the history of this island?"_

"_Does it have anything to do with pirates?"_

"_Yes! Our island is saved by a group of pirates, named Rumbar Pirates. Then, they encouraged us to play music to spread happiness everywhere. And now we're welcoming pirates from the whole world to know music! Who cares about marines?" _Mr. Drenk explains happily.

"_So… you guys have party every day?" _Rumbar Pirates? Never heard of that before. Maybe that pirate existed long time ago. I never read about them in the news.

"_Yes and tonight will be the party for Heart Pirates! There will be dancing, singing and performances! I'm sure we will give you the best hospitality we have!" _

Did he just say dancing?

I'm doomed.


	12. Chapter 12

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it **

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: Law is? Perv?**

**Girl-luvs-manga: More dilemmas to be coming…**

* * *

Armonny can be said as a city steeped in history, with music. Everyone here must master at least two musical instruments playing skills. Their education range are wide, including singing, performing on instruments, improvising melodies, composing and arranging music, reading and notating music, understanding music in relation to history and culture, and more, more, more.

Even I as a noble don't know that much about music. I got that A in Music due to my excellent theory and playing of guitar and… recorder. I failed my perfect pitch in singing, which they forced me to sing a dumb song called_ "I Got Tears in My Ears from Lying on My Back Crying on My Pillow over you". _ To be honest, my school's teachers had B.T.I.M _(Bad Taste in Music), _they listened to song which were like… million years ago. Girls in my school loved pop songs, but I hate pop songs because… they loved it. I only listened to oldies… and I try to hide that fact because I'm scared people would laugh at me being outdated.

I remember my teacher almost died of heart attack when she asked me to define the word "concert". My answer was _"A musical programme where performers ruin all the songs you enjoyed on the radio." _Sorry teacher, I was just telling the truth.

Rumbar Pirates were surely great. People here have different musical careers such as performers (_singers, musicians, dancers…)_, conductors, music instrument technicians, music journalists, and music therapists. But I don't want to be involved in dancing for tonight's party… That C+ really has to be blamed for my low self-esteem…

* * *

The party is holding in the castle. Law is impassive as ever, he is not moved by the music. Come to think of it, I never see him play music before, a surgeon won't sing, right? A few girls come to him and flirt, but he just stares at them coldly. I squirm as I see those pretty ladies try to be friendly with him, and let out a sigh of relief as they fade to the background.

Oh, and that trio are starving as hell.

"_I wonder what kind of food they will be served," _Penguin says while rubbing his belly.

"_Maybe they will have chickens, fish… Who knows? It's an island of music, everyone plays music, I wonder if anyone will cook for us," _Shachi says, looking down.

"_I wonder if there will be any Sea King to be cooked," _Bepo's eyes glimmering. I can't figure out if he is a normal bear or a polar bear. 50-50. He loves honey as well.

"_You idiot! We are not in the range of Calm Belt, of course there will be no Sea King for you to be eaten!" _Shachi and Penguin yell at Bepo.

"_Sumimasen," _Bepo stares at his feet, as if the world's gonna end soon.

"_Gah, you're so cute when you look depressed!" _I hug Bepo automatically.

"_Capoferro-ya, behave yourself please." _Law sends me a stern look.

"_He's not only your back rest, kay?" _I make a face at him.

* * *

As the orchestra starts the classical music, the servants come into the hall, each with one big tray in their hands. Oh my goodness, it's sushi meal! I can recognize all the sushi, there have mekajiki sushi, salmon sushi, oshinko maki, unatama sushi… Okay, my saliva is drooling now. Bepo is ecstatic as well, fish everywhere!

After dinner, our belly are sure expand by few centimeters… Penguin is still rubbing his belly, he says that would make more space for food. I'm speechless for his logic.

Follows behind the dance performances is singing. I feel awkward listening to the singer. He's singing a song called "Baby". What the hell?

Shachi and Penguin stand up together abruptly. They point their fingers at the singer and scream: _"You idiot! See what you have done! Miss Valerie is frowning because of your lame singing! Now get out of the stage! People, be all ears! We're gonna present the same song for Miss Valerie, something biological… " _

Biological? How could you possibly change that song into something biological?

The next moment they start to sing, I'm already laughing and rolling on the ground.

_Baby (Parody of Justin Bieber's "Baby")_

_We met yesterday We fell in love _

_I tried to kiss you But you ran away_

_I used a gun And shot you twice_

_And then you fell down like a fish out of water_

_And then I raped you You shouted NO_

_It's too late 'Cause you're naked now_

_After nine months you're in the hospital_

_In the maternity ward You're giving birth_

_And then come out a_

_Baby, baby, baby PUSH!_

_Baby, baby, baby PUSH!_

_Baby, baby, baby PUSH!_

_Oh my god I can see its head, head~_

_Baby, baby, baby PUSH!_

_Baby, baby, baby PUSH!_

_Baby, baby, baby PUSH!_

_That baby will forever be mine, mine~_

Yeah, they are Law's crewmates who learn "medical knowledge" from him, somehow they learn the biological one too…

* * *

"_Miss Valerie, it's your turn to perform some show for us!" _Mr. Drenk says piquant through the microphone.

**NO NO NO MY LIFE IS GOING TO END SOON **

"_I'm sorry to say this but I have no talent in everything you guys excel in," _I say sheepishly, appall to make any performance.

"_You can dance!"_

"_Err… I prefer not to dance… You see, I'm now feeling full for your scrumptious meal… And…" _

"_I'll dance with her." _I hear Law volunteers himself beside me. What? I send him an _are-you-serious _glare, and he smiles back.

"_Now, let us give this lovely couple a big round applause!" _Mr. Drenk seems to be misunderstood from what he sees.

"_Law, seriously, I can't dance. Even if you want it, we're wearing inappropriate clothes right now," _I gesture at my knight's uniform and his yellow hoodie.

"_Do I seem to be bothered by that?" _He stands up and takes a bow, offering me his hand.

Shit just got real. I can hear the explosion of my… ovaries. Another biological expression...


	13. Chapter 13

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Thank you for your lovely review~~**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: Our beloved captain seems hate to explain things…**

**Luckily I have this one week holiday in the middle of exam~~ Thanks for your reading please review~~ Let me know if I need any improvements!**

* * *

I have no idea what's going on. I don't like doing this when people are watching, but I have to get out of here. I have two left feet in dancing, and Law should have known that. I try to pull my hand out of Law's grip but he would clench tighter and firmer in order not to let me go. I keep chanting what I want over and over in my head. _I want to go away from here, just take me away, please, please. I can't do this shit._

Obviously, Law doesn't know anything about telepathy. He just strides toward the stage without turning back.

As Law and I reach the middle of the stage, he takes a bow, seeing me standing numbly beside him; he pushes my head to bow with him. I take a glance at the audiences; their eyes are shimmering with stars, eager for our dancing.

Out of my expectation, Law announces: _"I'm sorry to say this but we're not going to dance… We're going to perform a show- of dueling!" _

"_What?" _I sound like I'm choking, staring at him in disbelief. Law pretends not to hear my voice; I can see a smile touches the corners of his mouth as everyone looks confused and concerned. He wants to have a duel with me? What kind of practical joke he's playing now?

There's an uproar among the audiences.

_"Way to go! Such fantastic show since we last saw Brooke's classical fencing and iaido!" _

Just who the hell that "Brooke" is?

* * *

"_Capoferro-ya, I'm sure you can fight well, right?" _Law teases as he stuffs his left arm into pocket.

"_Yeah. You saw me fight that bunch of marines on the previous island, right?" _This is not a laughing matter, though he still can be relaxing as he can be.

"_Now I give you a chance to fight with me. They begged you to perform, not necessary dancing. And, I would want to know more about your skills, as a captain. You may know how good I fight as well," _he walks to the edge of the stage, gesturing at Bepo.

Bepo nods slightly and picks something up from his feet. It's Law's _nodaichi._ Bepo throws it over the audiences; everyone ducks as the _nodaichi_ flies over their heads. Law catches it firmly in his hand, and swings it over his right shoulder. Uh-oh, I'm now facing some kind of monster who has expert skills in using a sword about as tall as he is.

"_Shall we start?" _ Law smirks, drawing his sword out of the sheath with white crosses on it.

I cast him a speculative look. Now what? Fratricide?

I draw out my sword from the iron chain, standing in position of preparation. Though I had been practiced with a sword for the last twelve years under master's supervision, I haven't really fought a _nodaichi_ user. The excitement at the start of the fighting can really get the adrenalin flowing. I can feel my heart beats faster.

Law lets his grin goes feral and begins to circle around to his left. I picot after him, keeping the point of my sword aims between his eyes.

He attacks, driving his _nodaichi_ towards my ribs and I dodge it by jumping to the air. The audiences whisper in awe. Before he could do another attack, I swing my sword and clash it together with his sword. He snaps back; curl his arm again to regain his guard.

I have to concentrate on my defense and let my muscles settle into the rhythm of swordplay. He's an attacker; I can feel his simmering excitement about this fight is boiling. Strategies cross my mind. I have to defense and counter-attack.

* * *

After some clashing of swords going on and on, I'm barely staying on my feet because of exhaustion. I know I'm weak for my stamina is running low. Law is attempting to get past my defenses all the time. He's a good fighter, I can tell you that. But he's exhausting too, frowning while thinking about how to end this fight.

"_Capoferro-ya, don't be mad at me. I'm going to give you a final blow," _he snickers.

Final blow? Don't tell me he's going to use his devil fruit's power on me!

Suddenly, a light blue aura covers both of us. I stand still, clutching my sword tighter, and I remember what Penguin told me: _Captain Law's devil fruit power is he can separate or spatially displace anything inside a space he created. _What is he going to do?

Distances himself from me, he swings his sword for a slash, my head is then chopped off. What on earth is going on? Strangely to say I had lost my head but I feel no pain.

"_Trafalgar Law! Shut this crap! What have you done to my body?" _I scowl at him.

He hurries to my body, squats down and picks my head from the ground. _"Can you still defeat me with your head off?" _

"_Put my head back!" _I see my body tiptoes behind him and waves the sword. Law manages to lift his leg and dodge. Still having my head in his hand, he praises:_ "Your body seems to know how to work without its brain. What if I chop all of them?"_

"_You dare to do that?"_ I narrow my eyes at him.

"_Capoferro-ya, your eyes are already small, don't give me that look. It only makes your beautiful eyes smaller."_

With another few slashes, I witness my body being mutilated into broken parts.

"_Damn it," _I bite my lip.

Law then turns to the audiences and bows his head down. _"That's all for tonight, thank you."_

He earns a big clap. My poor body… lying there with my sword, and my dignity. Did everyone take this as a magic show? Crap.

* * *

"_DAMN IT DAMN IT DAMN IT DAMN IT DA-"_

"_Cut it off, Capoferro-ya." _Law pats my head. My head is carried in his left hand and my torso is carried under his right arm. My limbs are all tighten to the red rope on his _nodaichi's_ opening.

"_Put my body down! I can't believe you use your power to gain yourself the upper hand!" _I yell.

"_I'm going to attach your body back as soon as we reach the submarine." _

"_Hey! Mind where you're touching!"_ Good. The trio wants to eat more and they said they will be back to the submarine before midnight. Now I'm alone with this captain. So much for the second voyage in Heart Pirates.

"_Your legs keep moving, they're annoying."_

"_Trafalgar Law is an idiot, a bastard, a molester, a monster-"_

"_Thank god you got C- for Patience."_

"_So what?" _Finally, we reach the submarine.

"_I can see your cute side when you're getting angry," _he smirks.

"_Crap. I'm not cute." _My butler did try his best to tame me, to render me not so wild as to bring the family dishonor. Unluckily, he failed. I knew that want to arrange a stupid marriage with another noble family. But I was crystal clear that no one would want an unruly girl like me. And now, Law is telling me I'm cute. He must be out of his mind.

"_You mad, Captain Law?" _I mumble while he fixes my body.

"_No. Of course. I just don't want to let others watch you dance alone," _he answers in a soft tone.

I get my body back. I swings my arms and legs to check if they're still functional. When he finally speaks, he sounds sincere. _"I'm sorry."_

"_Huh? Oh, never mind. You saved me from dancing anyway."_

"_Then, can you please dance with me to show me your forgiveness?"_

"_WHAT? You're not going to give me a break after all those messes?"_

"_Please. Dance with me."_

"_You know I got C- in Dancing too," _I sound like I'm on the verge of crying.

"_I'll take the lead, and you just have to follow my steps." _Why he can make it sounds so easy? Busted, his hand is inviting me. AGAIN.

"_What kind of doctor you are? You're not only skilled in fighting; you know how to dance too?" _I put my palm on his.

"_I'm not a normal doctor, just like you're not a normal knight who knows how to comply at the right time," _he grins as he lifts my hand, and plants a kiss on it.

We dance slowly under the moonlight. Surprisingly I can follow his steps well.

_"See? You can dance." _Law smiles at me as he says.

Secretly, I hope that midnight will never arrive and the trio will eat their hearts out. Even a Cinderella had to wake up from her sweet dreams and rushed back to her home from the castle, away from the Prince. What more can I ask for?


	14. Chapter 14

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**Girl-luvs-manga: uh… I'll say thank you in replace of Valerie xD**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: Please keep reading, thx for your review :3**

**fangirl-4-evEr-xx: wow, is that so? Did you have goose bump? xD**

**MelissaRM: I'm happy to see your review :)**

**And thanks to the people who favorites and follows my story~~~**

* * *

When I come out of my shower, wrap in a fluffy bathrobe, I'm surprised to find Shachi and Penguin sitting on my bed. They're whispering with their heads down, not to mention some impish giggles. I clear my throat loudly, since they apparently didn't hear me exit the bathroom.

"_Oh, hey!" _They lift their heads up, pressing their lips together, trying to hide their amusement. The next minute they lock their eyes on me, wait, I think they're staring at my body, they have serious nosebleed and faint immediately.

"_Whatever." _I rub my forehead and let out a sigh. My light blue bed sheet is now stained with vermillion; I guess I'll have to wash it after a walk around the town. By judging from their coma, I think I can get dressed before they regain consciousness.

After putting on cami-knickers, I hurriedly button up my shirt. Just as I'm adjusting my black pants, Shachi and Penguin are awake; shaking their heads like they could shake away the dizziness. _"Wow, that's a speedy recovery," _I muse.

"_Oops, sorry Valerie, we have no intention to… err… You know…" _Penguin stammers, with his face red.

"_Have no intention to sit on my bed and look at my body?" _I raise my eyebrow.

"…" Shachi and Penguin are grinning together, but I can tell that they're just turning their head away to avoid my gaze.

"_Alright, I forgive you two. Now tell me why you two are in my room? You guys are obviously intruding my privacy, it could be counted as sexual harassment, you know," _I put on my waistband and wield my sword in the air before I attach it to my waist, to scare them indirectly, _hohoho._

"_Captain Law sent us! He just wanted us to make sure why you woke up early in the morning to take bath, that's it!" _Penguin and Shachi answer in a nervous tone.

"_Huh? Is that so?" _I say with a smirk. Somehow both of them remind me of Coby and Helmeppo. I wonder if they're still determined to help me. If that so, the next time I should tell them the truth, I'm no longer on my way for extramural program. _"Tell Captain Law that I'm going to look around in this town, I'll be back soon," _I edge toward the door.

"_How soon will your 'soon' be?"_

I'm taken aback by Law's sudden appearance out of my room. _"Woah, you just gave me a heart attack!" _I blush as I say. What had happened last night is remained clear in my mind. The sensation of him holding my hand, grabbing my wrist, they just won't wear off.

"_Oohh… Captain and Valerie dancing under the moon… K-I-S-S-I-N-G." _Penguin teases. I think he noticed the crimson shade on my face.

"_Hey, we didn't even kiss!" _ I turn around and correct him. Busted, the trio turned up earlier than they should be last night. Law immediately let go off me as he saw them, and gave an excuse: _"She said she wanted to test if her legs are still capable to dance or not."_

"_Oh hi, Bepo, Shachi, Penguin." _I pretended nothing happened by greeting them. To prevent them to keep on teasing, I rushed back to my room. And now they're bringing up this issue. Urgh.

"_I'm asking how soon you will be back." _Law says bluntly, with his arms crossed over his chest.

"_As soon as I can be, control freak," _I step out from the door without turning my head back, feeling stupid for danced with him.

* * *

Law forced Bepo to tag along. Well, I couldn't argue with that, Bepo's the one who get along with me the best since our first met.

"_Listen Valerie, even though you're Captain Law's childhood friend, you're still a newcomer." _Bepo begins.

"_Yeah yeah, by that means I have to protect you if you're in danger," _I mumble.

"_Eek, I'm not weak, I can protect myself! I did protect you last time!" _Bepo stomps his feet.

"_Calm down Bepo. Everyone is looking at you, and you make me look like a weird master of a pet bear," _I continue on my walk.

"_Sumimasen." _There goes his weak will again, then he goes on: _"Hey, I'm not a pet!_

* * *

We bump into Mr. Drenk, and he takes us to meet the top five musicians in this town, which are now practicing in the Reverand Hall. As we cross the threshold of the hall, the melodies of classics reach our ears.

"_We believe that music represents one's soul. If one's heart connected with music, music can control that person's mind easily. Do you prefer to try it out, Miss Valerie?" _Mr. Drenk says brightly.

"_Okay."_

Mr. Drenk notices Bepo beside me. _"Your pet along?"_

Bepo nods his head. _"Gah! I'm not a pet!"_

Me and Bepo sit in front of a talented violinist called Elaine. She's quite pretty, wearing whole black. _"Ready?" _She asks while setting the violin under her chin. Me and Bepo nod in agreement.

She begins her play. As the rhythms flow over us, I feel… emotional all of a sudden. I think of my mom, Aurora, Exile and my master. Bepo cries. As the music stops, Elaine smiles. _"See the magic of our music?"_

I and Bepo clap our hands. She begins another play. I can recognize the melody, and I sing out:

_Fifteen men on the dead man's chest_

_Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum_

_Drink and the devil had done for the rest _

_Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum_

_The mate was fixed by the bosun's pike_

_The bosun brained with a marlinspike_

_And cookey's throat was marked belike_

_It had been gripped by fingers ten;_

_And there they lay, all good dead men_

_Like break o' day in a boozing ken_

_Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum_

This is a song my mother would sing when she tells me story about pirates. Sad to say I know the first phrase only.

Elaine praises my singing. Bepo sticks his tongue out and mutters:_ "Show off."_

There goes the third play. I feel kinda… funny, and start to laugh. Bepo seems to have this rib-tickling feeling too. We blurt out the same thing together: _"Hahaha… Captain Law hid a frog under his crotch!"_

We hear laughter behind us. It's Shachi and Penguin. They're following us all the time? What's worse, I see Trafalgar Law leaning against the wall. He lifts his head slowly; I see his face goes black.

"_What did you just say, Capoferro-ya?"_


	15. Chapter 15

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**fangirl-4-evEr-xx: It's time for hide-and-seek!**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: it's a song from the book "Treasure Island"**

**Girl-luvs-manga: I'm really happy you love it ;)**

* * *

I feel like I'm playing some giant video game, or trying to solve a really complicated math equation. _One female knight is trying to avoid her captain who is now boiling with rage. He has three subordinates who seem capable of helping her. There's another five excellent musicians spread out across a radius of ten meters, which she must not do any harm on them. If she has to make it fifty meters through the exit, what is the probability she will wake up tomorrow morning in the boiler room of the submarine with her body broken into pieces? Feel free to round pi to 3.14._

"_Ca… Captain…" _Bepo stammers, shooting at his feet.

"_What. Did. You. Just. Say?" _Law speeds towards me. The _nodaichi _in his hand seems thirsty for my blood now. For some reason, he's scarier than my interviewers though he's just a tall, lanky captain. I doubt that he has abs.

_I just said you hid a frog under your crotch when you were a naïve kiddo, _I think. But I savor the words as I will a forkful of tiramisu. Then I do start laughing. Fits of giggling overtake me, and I have to clamp my hands over my mouth to keep from shrieking and gasping and totally blowing my cover. For a second Bepo just stares at me, amazed, but then we look at each other and start laughing together.

I know we're thinking the same things: one, Law's childhood story; two, Elaine's playing that funny music again. I guess she deliberately gets us into trouble. And that's the worst part of people. They say never trouble troubles till trouble troubles you, yet you get into trouble without trouble troubles. Law's sprinting at me. Like a hungry lion after its prey.

"_Elaine! HAHAHA… Stop it- AHAHAHA! My captain is going to kill me!" _ I run and laugh and try to stop Elaine at the same time. I'm afraid to turn my head and see if he's coming at me 'cause I'll probably see a demon chasing behind me with that evil aura spreading out from his inner spirit. A brief flash of terror zips through me: _Will I die here?_

"_TRAFALGAR LAW DON'T DO THIS I DON'T WANT TO DIE HERE!" _I turn my direction to Elaine, figuring that maybe her music can help me.

"_WEAKLINGS CANNOT PICK THEIR WAY OF DEATH!" _Out loud he yells behind me.

"_Elaine! Play any music to stop him!" _

"_Okay. Nemuriuta FLANC!" _Elaine starts to play a soothing music, I fell sleepy instantly. I shake my head and turn. WHAT? Elaine's music has no effect on Law? He's still chasing me with vim. I'm doomed. Wait. There's an exit. I run towards the door, which Shachi and Penguin are guarding by it.

"_Shachi! Penguin! Block her way or you die!" _Law finds out that I'm trying to escape. Genius. What the hell.

Shachi and Penguin obey Law, standing in front of the door steadily. I reach them in no time. _"Get out of my way," _I order them. They're my crewmates and I don't want to hurt them.

"_Yes you may cross this path if you give me a kiss, Valerie." _Shachi points at his cheek shyly.

OH GREAT THEY ARE NOW TAKING ADVANTAGE ON ME BUT I THINK HIS REQUEST IS ACCEPTABLE THAT I AM NOW ON A LIFE-AND-DEATH ESCAPE

"_Oh, me too." _Penguin crosses his hands together, blushing. Seriously, these guys are threatening me and they're acting innocent and lovely and pleading me to be good to them. Without hesitation, I pull Shachi to me and peck a kiss quickly on his cheek. Same goes to Penguin. They melt down to the ground and let me have my way out.

"_Shachi! Penguin! Both of you are so gonna die!" _That's what I hear before I cross the threshold and let my feet speed.

* * *

I take deep breaths, trying to keep my mind from spinning, trying to focus. And then I stumbling backward, falling to the ground and leaning against the wall behind me. My heart is hammering painfully against my chest and my breath is rasping in my throat. I feel like I can creep forward an inch at a time.

Law calls my name. _I'll never make it, _I think. _I'll never make it back alive. _There he is standing in front of me. _"One hundred percent." _I say as I bury my head between my legs.

"_One hundred percent? Of what?" _Law's breathing hard too.

"_Of the probability I end up lying in the boiler room with my body separated into pieces," _I gasp.

"_You spitted out my secret."_

BUT I DO NOT THINK YOU ARE ONLY ANGRY ABOUT YOUR SECRET

_"It isn't fair! Bepo, Shachi and Penguin spitted your secret too..." _I turn my head to avoid his gaze. The coconut thing...

_"Well, you have to pay back in order not to wake up tomorrow morning lying in the boiler room with your body..." _Law shows his usual small grin.

I frown and rub my neck. _"Pay back? Payback is a bitch."_

* * *

Law brings me to a bookstore. Well, it has quite nice ambiance, with classics playing through the speakers. He scans the store and walks to the _"Medical"_ section. I follow his footsteps. Oh brother. I know nothing about medical. Maybe the pay back is he wants me to be bored to death. He picks out a book which entitled: _ABC of Imaging in Trauma. _I roll my eyes.

"_Capoferro-ya, why don't you go and get some books for your own?" _He says as he flips through the book.

"_Well, I found nothing interesting." _

"_But I see something interesting for you." _He snickers, still holding the same book and walks to the _"Interest" _section. He's searching books there, and tosses one yellow book to me. I catch it and read the title.

"_Fencing… for… Dummies… You dummy!" _I throw the book back.

At the cashier, Law puts all the books he has chosen on the counter. He gestures the books at me. _"Foot the bill, Capoferro-ya."_

"_How the hell you know I have money with me?" _My eyes widen.

"_Secret." _

"_Gee whizz. How much do I have to pay?" _I ask the cashier after I grunt.

"_39280 beri." _

"_Trafalgar Law! Are you trying to rip me off now?" _Dang. Payback is truly a bitch.

"_No." _He walks off to the _"Medical" _section again.

"…" I take out my purse reluctantly. The cashier takes the money with bright smile on her face. Law walks back to me, holding another book.

"_Is this additional?" _I scowl at him.

"_No. I found another thing that might interest you," _he gives me a naughty smile.

I have a bad feeling. _"What it is?"_

He shows me the first page of the book. It's a graphic of two naked human, a man and a woman, with their body halved into two parts: muscles and skeletons, like those you have seen in biology books before. My face goes red; I don't know what to say. The cashier giggles lightly. I grab the books I purchased for him, walk out of the bookstore immediately.

* * *

"_Capof-"_

"_Shut up! Stop following me!"_

"_Look mama, it's them! They performed on the stage last night!" _A kid with a guitar in his hand exclaims as we walk pass him.

"_Oh you're right dear! It's the magician with his assistant; I think she's a comedian." _That kid's mother holds his hand and walks away.

"_HAHAHAHA! Capoferro-ya, since when you got into career as a comedian?"_

"…" I ignore him, refuse to fight back.

"_Capoferro-ya."_

"…"

"_Capoferro-ya!"_

"_What! You want a piece of me?" _I flip my head back.

"_No, I want a slice of you."_

"_Bastard. I'm not a cake." _I had no pun intended. DUH.

"_Not even a meat." _

He demands me to tell him how the trio knew his childhood's secret. I explain the cards which Aurora gave me as a gift for my birthday. Now, he wants to confiscate the cards. _"Who knows you guys will play any dumb game on me by then." _Is the reason for it.

"_Capoferro-ya, you have any sickness that you're frightened with?" _Wow, now he changes the topic to something about medical.

"_I need to drink enough water. I think I might scare of getting dehydrated." _I tilt my head as I say.

"_I'm asking for sickness, not some kind of emergency symptoms." _He shoots me a stern look.

"… _Maybe… fever?" _

"_Fever?"_

"_Yeah. If I get caught of fever, I'll need one week for recovery," _I look at him and go on, _"and it's because it takes a long time, I try my best not to have fever. I don't go out when it's raining. I drink a lot of water when it's summer."_

"_Hmm…" _Law's in a contemplative mood.

"_Why are you asking? Does it matter?" _

"_Nothing. Just asking." _He shakes his head to reassure me.


	16. Chapter 16

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: Things gonna get interesting with that.**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Ya, imagine that kind of thing happens to you xD**

**fangirl-4-evEr-xx: Lol~~~**

**UNICORNSPOORAINBOWS: the idea came from a friend who cheated in exam... you have a special name that inspires me another idea!**

* * *

"_Valerie! Valerie!"_

Hearing my name snaps me out of my dream, and I'm suddenly aware that I'm taking nap under the sun in the evening, with a book covering my face. For a moment I forget that I'm supposed to be doing some killings for Law's medical research. Why I ended up sleeping… he did not discuss the materials in more detail. Instead, he just gave me a book and commanded me to search for anything he marked in the book. Well, this work has no time limit given.

A leopard cannot change its spots. Trafalgar Law cannot change his sadistic personality. They are the same theory.

As soon as I got out of his office, I sat on the deck to scan the book and found out that most of the materials have to be searched under the sea. Even if I'm good in fighting doesn't mean that I love getting into fights, especially with animals. I never dived into Grand Line's oceans before, let alone hunt for seafood. Discretion is the better part of valor. I crossed out significant materials that are easy to get.

The list was long and so with the requiem playing from Armonny, I had a good nap.

"_What's wrong, Shachi?" _My voice is thick with sleep.

"_Captain Law said that if you can't get this job done, you can use your own money to buy the materials from the market in Armonny." _

"_My money? Why doesn't he give me money? It's for our crew's medical supplies, right?" _No way, if this goes on, my purse will keep bleeding. And, and, I haven't buy anything for myself. And, and, I don't believe the market in this town sells those extraordinary stuffs that he wants. Before I became a knight, I worked as a squire. I feel that my life is turning back into that. Again.

"_Hey Shachi, I have one question for you."_

"_It's my pleasure to answer you, Valerie." _Shachi puts his hand on his hat, blushing.

"_Why was you and Penguin following me and Bepo with captain just now?"_

"_Err… Just as you headed off to the town, Captain Law saw blood stain on your bed. He thought that you… had period…"_

"… _and?" _I'm fighting the urge to bang my head to the wall.

"_We explained to him that we 'accidentally' saw you walked out of the bathroom covered with bathrobe… Just so you know. And he pissed off and made us followed you two." _I think he purposely emphasizes the word 'accidentally' to clear his guilt.

"_What for?" _I raise my eyebrow.

"_I'm not clear with that, just obeying his order. He's the captain."_

"_Weird."_

* * *

I head to the town, and find out that the same musicians are practicing in the Reverand Hall. I beg them to help me in that quest, asking them to use music to control the sea creatures. That's how I know Armonny has a secret pathway to underground. They built cabins which have loudspeakers under the sea, for musicians to play music there to capture sea creatures. By using the concept of sounds travel faster in water, they control the fish's sense by playing deadly songs and manage to catch up to ten thousand pounds of fish each day.

After Elaine and her band finish playing, she tells me to go up to the seashore to check out. I'm amazed by how the work is done, though I only complete the octopus, eel, barracuda and shark's works.

The fish are still alive, breathing hard on the seashore. Bepo gives them a few kicks and they die. I dissect them with my sword, and collect their internal organs with Bepo's aid. I'm worried that I might get the wrong part. I'm not a profession in biology.

"_Wow, they use music in such wide range. So it's not unusual for these people to not to be worried about marines." _Bepo begins.

"_It could be worse if the music is misused." _I reply shortly, washing my hands to get rid of the blood.

"_How so?" _Bepo packs all the materials in a big fishing net. To be honest, they have smell quite awful.

"_They can control mankind's mind. That means anything can happen, like conflict a war or whatever." _I rinse my sword and my boots. Bepo nods seriously to himself, as though I have said something insightful. _"Let's go back to the sub. You carry the materials."_

"_Hey, don't you order me around!"_

* * *

It's my turn to do the patrol tonight. With the light of lamps, I check around the submarine. I remember the way Bepo checks when it's his turn. Maybe I'll mimic him to get away the boredom.

"_Left side, clear; right side, clear; front, clear," _I murmur. No use. The boredom is looming inside me. I can barely hear any music from the town, only the sounds of huge waves breaking on the shore. I look up to the sub's mast. A naughty thought crosses my mind. If I'm not mistaken, it's been a long time I never climbed a tree. What will it be to climb up to the mast?

I speed quickly up to the second floor of sub, jump up to the roof without making any noise. I examine the mast, and just about I'm going to climb it, I hear soft rustling. For one second I think I might be over-sensitive. I stand there for a while, listening to the tide sucking on the shore, the water heaving and tumbling with bits of rock. Then I realize there are sounds of footsteps within.

I dart forward at intervals, sprinting silently from one corner to the next. I reach the deck of first floor. There's no one around. I open the door which leads me to crewmembers' rooms. I see a dark shadow in front of Law's room. _A thief, or a spy? _I manage to surround him and ask him what he is doing.

"_I wanted to get a drink of water," _the (_fail) _thief says.

Yeah right, where are you gonna find a drink of water in Law's room? The toilet bowl? I can shove your head in that if you like. _"There's lot of sea water out there. Do you need me to teach you how to filter it for drinking?" _I cast a devilish smile at him. He escapes as soon as possible.

Law's a surgeon and he has lots of confidential documents that others want to steal it. I shrug, I don't know much about doctors. I walk out again, and hear people's screaming for help. _"Is that Miss Valerie?" _

"_Yes I am."_

"_Miss Valerie, the comedian?"_

"_For your information, I am a pirate and a knight! Not a comedian," _I say harshly.

"_We heard that your captain's a doctor, can you ask him to help us treat our mayor?"_

"_Mayor? What happened to Mr. Drenk?"_

"_He was shot, and he's now bleeding seriously."_

* * *

"_Trafalgar Law! Trafalgar Law!" _I bang his door and shout to wake him up. But there's no reply. _"Captain Law! Get out of your bed! Now!" _

"_Capoferro-ya! You're disturbing my sleep and I don't take orders from you! Go out to do your patrol!"_

"_Mr. Drenk got shoot and he needs your help! Get out of your bed now!"_

He opens the door and glares at me. It's the first time I see him without his hat. His hair is a mess. Then he looks at the two people beside me: one of the citizens is carrying Mr. Drenk. _"I don't do surgery for free," _he says in a low voice.

"_I… I'll pay… you ten… million beri…" _Mr. Drenk offers.

"_BEPO! SHACHI! PENGUIN! WAKE UP ALL OF YOU! ANOTHER SURGERY! BRING THE GURNEY AND SEND HIM TO THE OPERATION ROOM! PRONTO!" _Law finishes his command quickly. DUH.

* * *

After the surgery, Mr. Drenk is in stable condition. Bepo stares at me skeptically: _"Why do problematic things happen on your first patrol?"_

"_How should I know? Hey, are you blaming me for disturb your sleep? In that case, I apologize. But I'm not the one who shot him," _I poke Bepo's face.

"_Be quiet. He's awake," _Law looks at us sharply. We point our fingers at each other.

"_Trafalgar Law… I ask your help… They have stolen the notes, 'Curse of Lullaby'… and they ran away…" _Mr. Drenk says weakly.

"_Who are they? What's the 'Curse of Lullaby'?" _Law narrows his eyes.

"_They are the top musicians I have introduced to you. __The 'Curse of Lullaby' is music that can brainwash people's mind and make them kill themselves… It's a forbidden note that I have kept it with me for years… I didn't know they would steal it and cooperate with the World Government…" _

"_What? The World Government?" _

"_Please… Snatch it back…"_

"_What's the payback?" _

"_Trafalgar Law!" _Bepo holds me in place not to get close to the captain to give him a punch.

"_Three crates of gold… With that ten million beri I offered earlier…"_

"_Okay. We're on it!" _Law picks up his _nodaichi _beside the bed.

"_Yay! Ten million beri~ Three crates of gold~ All mine~~ Yahoo~" _The trios sing together happily.

I shoot Law an annoyed glance. He chuckles and says: _"Payback isn't a bitch, for me."_


	17. Chapter 17

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**Girl-luvsl-manga: Stay tuned! This arc will be a long one and with more hilarious scenes!**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: Oops… I kinda left out those mistakes, thanks for your reminder!**

**UNICORNSPOORAINBOWS: I don't slap my friend's ass cause she got a big ass and touching her ass accidentally she'll go narcissism that she mistake you jealous of her big ass ==**

**fangirl-4-evEr-xx: Thanks for your review, I'll try my best to update fast~~**

**MelissaRM: LOL**

**I'm thrilled that my exam left twelve days~~ The smell of freedom~~**

* * *

The two peculiar hints that Mr. Drenk overheard from the conversation between the musicians are _Element _and _L.U. _To tell the truth, I can't make anything out from these two miserable hints. Law is getting jumpy; he keeps repeating the hints over and over again as if it could help him figure it out, though it's just few minutes ago Mr. Drenk gave us the hints. We're stuck in limbo; the tension in the room is almost palpable. Bepo yawns, the pain expressions on Shachi and Penguin's faces, I feel sorry for making them having headache in the wee hours like this.

"_I think the "element" is the ship's name which they were going to aboard," _I make out a quick guess, to ease the tension.

"_A ship?" _says Law. He stops tapping his finger on his _nodaichi_.

"_Yeah. When I was small, my father once took me onboard. It's a particular ship built for the nobles. Just like the chemical elements in the periodic table, they used the elements to name the ship's rooms and parts," _I say.

"_The periodic table? In that case, we need one to solve out the locations," _Law takes a blank paper on the desk and begins his scribbling work, _"I have suffered much to memorize all the elements, now hard work pays off." _He snickers. Wow. I didn't know that doctors have to bear those things in their mind. Within few minutes, he has already sketched out all the details. Brilliant.

"_The Element? That ship will be set off by 2 a.m. You guys have to catch up with the ship. It is now docking at the Krain Harbor." _

"_Stay still, Mr. Drenk. You're in a stable condition doesn't mean that you're fully recovered," _says Law coolly, he goes on, _"Capoferro-ya, do you have any idea about the security on the ship? Try to figure out as much as you can."_

"_Well, they have quite tight security system. Marines everywhere, that's for sure. For the entrance, they have to check the guests' invitation cards," _I say. And I know it's impossible for pirates like us to invade.

"_Capoferro-ya, if I'm not mistaken, you're still a noble, right?"_

"_If my father hasn't taken back my position, I think you're right."_

"_Alright, we'll use you to invade that ship," _Law says out loud of his decision.

"_Are you kidding? Even though I'm a noble, the back of my coat is sewn with Jolly Roger; I'm one of the Heart Pirates, that can never be changed," _I snap at him.

"_I have a plan. No one will find out about your current status," _Law shoots me a tentative look, _"depends on whether you want to try it or not."_

I look at him, confused. Somehow I know that it'll be something bad. But it's even worse if I don't try it.

* * *

"_Aye ya! Aye Aye Aye!" _Bepo takes out all the marines who are guarding on the deck with his swift kicks. _"Captain, all clear," _says Bepo with a nod.

"_Here's a den den mushi for you. Stay close to our sub until I make any further orders. Shachi and Penguin! Tell the rest of the crew to take care of Mr. Drenk. Capoferro-ya, you did say that you're strong. Couldn't you hold longer till we reach the entrance?" _Law blurts out strings of command behind me. I can't believe that he could actually make out this plan: I have to carry him on my back so that covers both of our Jolly Rogers on our clothes. And he's a tall guy, even though I can be counted as a tall one, still it's hard to carry a guy who is taller and holding a big _nodaichi _in his hand.

"_I feel that I'm a stupid," _I grunt, _"This is killing me."_

"_Nah. You just have to take this as training under my supervision without the presence of your master," _says Law, holding himself closer to me. Training? More like an execrable ordeal. I think he's testing my patience. Urgh. How can you possibly stand the nice scent from a guy's body, let alone that he's exhaling deeply beside my ear? I trudge towards the entrance, and I can tell that Law's amused by how much I'm getting frustrated, that I can only succumb under his orders for the fact that he's my captain.

There aren't many guards at the entrance. Law lays his head on my shoulder to hide his face, clutching his _nodaichi_ firmer. I sniff at the sight over my shoulder, and then I look up to the guards. _"Capoferro Valerie," _I say out my name.

"_I'm sorry miss, but your name is not in the guests' list," _the guard who is bald says with a tone that he hopes me to get out of this place as soon as possible. I stare at him coldly; too obstinate to obey someone who's not my captain.

"_Hey wait, look at her uniform. She's one of the knights from the Royal Academy of Knights! Look at her sleeve, she has three ranking with her, it means her rank is higher than us!" _The second marine who has no front teeth whispers to the first marine. Oh brother. Now they're mentioning my ranking. I should have patch off the three lines sewn on my sleeve like I took off the badges before I came into Grand Line. So, the two guards take me as a knight who is representing her country to protect the nobles. I guess I should go with that since they say so. They seem to notice Law who is lowering his head real down, with his hat covering his face.

"_Oh, don't bother about him. My master wants me to take care of a disabled to increase the difficulty of this mission," _I flash a smile at them as I voice out the lie. Law pinches me on my back. Ouch. It is conceivable that I'll be dead once I put him down inside.

* * *

"_How dare you call your captain a disabled?" _Law questions before I disengage him from me. My hands feel numb now, that I have carried an elephant for too long.

"_Not able to walk on himself, feeling shy to meet people, people would have taken you as a disable as I did you know?" _I mock, twisting my arm. We're now in the ballroom, with lots of nobles chirping non-stop. Most of them are wearing exclusive tuxedos and gowns, with blink-blink accessories for women. NOBLES. URGH.

"_Whatever. Now, we've got t_o _find out the person who's holding the clue for the 'Curse of Lullaby'. Do you think that particular person is among these people? Normally the one who holds confidential clues is being served in the anteroom."_

"_Maybe you're right. I don't see any of the five musicians are here," _I turn my head back to him.

"_Okay. We left no choice but another plan." _Law swings his _nodaichi_ to his right shoulders and lets out a scoff.

"_What plan? We do have Plan B?"_

"_Of course. I call it… Plan of Seduction."_


	18. Chapter 18

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :) **

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention. **

**Girl-luvs-manga: Thank you! I have positive energy lalala~~ **

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: And he seemed to be quite enjoy being carried, haha**

**fangirl-4-evEr-xx: Valerie will be one of his victim, kekeke…**

* * *

The ballroom is truly a hidden gem. It has changed a lot since the last time I came here. It features a warm and inviting lounge area, elegant chandeliers for romantic lighting, and a grand entrance staircase leading from the cocktail area. Refreshments cover a table on the side, and the band playing on the makeshift stage isn't that bad. WAIT. THE BAND? I jerk my head to the direction of the stage. There they are. The five musicians. Those traitors.

I nudge Law and point out the location of the stage to him. Unfortunately, a group of girls stand directly in front of us all of a sudden and totally block the view of the stage. I wrinkle my nose, those girls with thick make-up seem to be provoked by my pointing finger which is supposed to be pointed at the stage and they came to us and now I'm pointing at their breast. WHAT THE HELL. Law casts an amusing look at me, and shakes his head lightly. Those girls stare at me in disbelief, with their mouths open, wide.

"_How insolent for a girl to point at other people directly to their breast," _the girl who stands the closest to us says, waving a fan which is covered with thick feathers that I could mistake it as a feather duster, _"but you're a knight and I understand what's behind your manners so your guilt is removed. By the way, you have a handsome partner with you," _this girl simply gives judgments like she's a priest. She shows her alluring smile to Law and that make me want to puke right to her face.

"_Thanks for your forgiveness," _I reply with sincere, even though she's the one who's blocking our way, _"but you have no right to disparage my job as a knight. Being a noble doesn't mean you got to have a condescending attitude towards others." _I can bet my life that she has a lower rank than me. And, she's definitely a moron who doesn't read newspaper. She's telling me that Law is handsome. Maybe she'll cut her tongue if she has found out that Law is a pirate later. I look up to Law, and find him flirts with that girl with his eyes.

_Is this what he called "Plan of Seduction"? _Whatever, as long as that could bring us closer to what we're finding no matter how moronic the plan he comes up with. _"You can go around seeking for more details you know," _Law says to me before turning his back on me and "seduce" that girl. Okay, seeing him really in his element with those cheesy girls, I head to the stage.

I try not to get too close to the stage, that I'm confirmed all five of them know me back at Armonny. Elaine the violinist, Tracy the pianist, Karara the cellist, Louise the trumpeter, and Michelle the clarinetist. The stage is not far from the cocktail area, I get myself a drink. Before I have a chance to take a sip of it, someone calls my name from the back.

* * *

"_Valerie, you should spruce yourself up for a gala like this! You can even earn yourself a marriage if you look good enough. There're many single nobles here! For a spinster that is no longer young like you should go all out for your happiness!"_

"_Ahaha… I attend this gala as a represent from my academy…"_

"_How's your dad doing recently?"_

"_Err… As busy as always, he has to treat Saint Roswald so he seldom comes back to North Blue. He once stayed in Mariejois for six months."_

NO WHY SHOULD I END UP BEING STUCK WITH DAD'S OLD FRIENDS AND HOW COME THEY COULD RECOGNIZE ME EASILY FOR WE HAVE NO SEEN EACH OTHER FOR YEARS CHIT-CHAT IN A STUPID BALLROOM WITH STUPID NOBLES IS TOTALLY NOT MY STYLE I AM GOING TO SUFFOCATE SOON THEY KEEP THROWING STUPID QUESTIONS AT ME AND DO NOT SEEM TO GIVE UP ON BORING TOPICS TRAFALGAR LAW I HATE YOU BUT I HAVE TO HELP THAT MR. DRENK GAAAHHHH ALL I WANT IS FOR THE FLOOR TO OPEN UP AND SWALLOW ME

Before I turn into a giant green monster and swallow them due to boredom, I manage to change the topic. _"Why are you all here? Is this a celebration or some party?" _I ask with curious feigning on my face.

"_Woo, Valerie, you didn't know? We're here to support the chief executive's decision for planning to clean off the oceans filled with dirty pirates. He has cooperated with world's top musicians to get the music note called 'Curse of Lullaby'. With the five virtuoso musicians, they can control those pirates' mind and make them kill themselves." _An old lady from the Wertage family explains.

"_Hmm… To be honest, I would like to see the death of Strawhat Pirates first. Did you read the news? They invaded the Enies Lobby last week and got the evilest woman from there to become their crewmate! Nico Robin does not deserve to live. Imagine the disaster she'll bring to this world…" _Mr. Hound speaks in a low and slow tone.

"_Hah! Don't overtake by the news! The attack on the Enies Lobby was actually nothing. The escape of the Shiki the Golden Lion from the Impel Down was even horrible! Not only him, other pirate rookies should be eliminated as well. They create havoc and chaos everywhere. Eustass Kid, Trafalgar Law… They are all worthless parasites to the world!" _

For a panicked second I don't know what I am doing. I just can't control myself to blow a punch to Mr. Shrivel's face on the spur of the moment. I look at my fist, filthy blood stains on it. Now I have everyone's attention nearby me. I have overstepped the line, and the die is cast. I remember what my master told me in one of the trainings before: _If you can't convince them, confuse them._

"_Oh I'm so sorry Mr. Shrivel! I don't know… I just felt very angry as you were mentioning that Eustass Kid… I just got lost and…" _I squad down to Mr. Shrivel and act like a girl who got caught in a shop for trying to steal a bread and try to make others understand her predicament and poverty of her family. For God's sake I don't even know what I'm doing. I got C- in Acting and I'm very sure that Mr. Shrivel doesn't buy this.

"_No, no… I understand your feelings. You hate pirates as well, just like us. I have confidence in you, that you will become a great knight who will serve under the World Government," _he pauses, and continues,_ "look at you, with this strong spirit! One mention the name of a pirate and you'll go berserk, hahaha! I admire your will, just like your father who is loyal to the tenryubito regardless he has a daughter to be worried for. Now I know why your father left you without worries, you're an independent woman!" _After Mr. Shrivel finishes his crap, the others nod to themselves like they're assuring me it's fine to give him a punch to his face. I mentally give myself a pat in the back for a job well done.

Heck. Now what? Law is in danger. He's on the list to be eliminated too. I went through all the trouble and only find out this.

* * *

_Law, where are you now? _This place is big and finding Law here is a thankless job. I could have stalk the musicians to find out the whereabouts of the music note. Don't tell me he has totally sank in this place and forgot he has ten million _beri _and three crates of gold waiting for him.

I find myself back to the cocktail area again. I stare at those sparkling cocktails which are pleading me to drink them. I'm annoyed by the fact that Law is having fun somewhere else, so I try to set fire on the cocktails with my laser beam glare. But the cocktails look more tempting, I grab one of them and finish it with a gulp. Hmm? Not bad the taste of it. I drink another few more as to ease down my stress. People who pass by will shoot me suspicious stare but I don't care. They don't know that I'm a pirate and luckily Heart Pirates' Jolly Roger has no skull and crossbones. Just a mocking smiley which suits my sarcastic way of thinking.

_"Capoferro-ya, what are you doing here? Having fun with cocktails?"_

The cocktail almost shoots out of my nose. I'm gasping for air while punching my chest with my right fist. Curses.

_"Who the hell was the one who enjoy flirting and seducing other ladies here? Don't mind me, go ahead and enjoy your time with them." _I inch closer to him and scowl at him.

_"You jealous?"_

_"You CRAZY?!" _I shoot back and continue to have my date with cocktails.

_"Well, you can't say that I was having fun with them. They're plain boring. You're much interesting. All they talked about were fashion, dancing, nobility. Plus, you have a nicer body than them."_

_"SHUT IT! YOU PERV!"_

_"Enough for crapping. I just found out the person who's holding the secret behind this. Go to the room 36. You shall hide inside the room and I'll be waiting outside the room for that person to come. I order you not to take any action before I gesture you." _

_"Huh? Hiding inside the room? Does the room have any cupboard or whatever for me to hide?"_

_"It's a fitting room. But I don't want you to hide in a cupboard or whatever. I want you to climb up to the aisle which is close to the ceiling and wait there."_

_"WHAT?"_


	19. Chapter 19

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Thanks! I'll try to make it entertaining for you guys!**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: Err… It was just… a tease… ahahaha… *swifty eyes***

**MelissaRM: Yeah, I will! Thanks for your review**

* * *

I don't want to stand on the aisle waiting there the entire half an hour. I mean, I have browsed every square inch there is to browse in the fitting room (well, not a normal fitting room with a bed and some antique chairs). Besides, it's hard to balance myself up here that the aisle is narrow, twenty feet tall from the ground and about seven feet away from the ceiling. I can fall down anytime, that I'm not concentrating on balancing but something else.

As the minutes go by, it ticks me off more and more that Law is going to bring someone here he has seduced. I try not to squeeze my abdomen, but somehow I can feel my stomach's churning inside there. This sickens me. I need more cocktails to soothe it.

Yeah right. He once saved my life. I became his subordinate. That's all. But why am I having all these funny feelings? He can choose any girl he likes. Why should I be bothered? I'm just a female knight with strong tomboy personalities and don't even know how to spell "love" in ten different languages. I shall give him my best wishes, along with the rest of the crewmates. Bepo will be the happiest. I remember the first time we met.

_I like you, and maybe I'll like your captain._

_Thank you. My captain will like you too._

Sorry Bepo, but our captain will never fall for a girl like me. I'm not gentle, I sucks in cooking, and I have bad manners, and… I'm elder than him. Here's the thing, Law and I were classmates, he was a genius and he skipped grade. Elder than him by two years is really nothing, but I heard that women get old pretty fast. That explains why young ladies prefer to be with men that are at least eight years elder than them. Damn. Why am I concern about all this shit by now? I should be glad that I'm not fall down yet.

* * *

Hearing the door creaks open, I have my mind back to the reality. Law comes into the room first, what's following behind him... is a man. He's in his forties and dressed like a gentry in black tuxedo. I quickly cover my face so I won't let out the sound of my titter. Trafalgar Law? Seduced a guy? Oh my gosh. This is out of my expectation. I watch them sit together face-to-face on the antique chairs. Although it's quite far from them, I can catch what are they discussing.

_"So, what's your name young man?" _The man who I thought is a homosexual asks.

_"Trafalgar Law. I'm a surgeon. They called me Surgeon of Death," _Law answers, slouching on the chair.

_"How did you find out that it was me who plan these all?"_

_"Wow. Is this an interrogation? A little bird told me. She's one of the nobles that I have forgotten her name," _Law says noncommittally.

_"Hmm... To be honest, I'm impressed that you managed to figure out the structures of this ship. Not much people know them. I was a chemistry maniac when I was young. After I had been promoted to become a noble, I have always wanted to dedicate to the society with my wealth. I'm not like the usual noble, who thinks of his rank, rank, and rank. Nothing but rank. And, I thought it's about time to end this."_

_"What? What do you mean?" _Law's eyes widen with concerns.

The man laughs for a while. He continues, _"I lured all those nobles on this ship by convincing them each of them will be promoted if they're willing to support me," _he stops, and goes on, _"the filthy nobles will be eliminated together with dirty pirates, how's that sound?"_

I gasp. Law gets up from his seat. Tension fills the air. _"Nobles... and pirates huh? Are you in your dotage?"_

_"No. And I need a pair of hands. How about you cooperate with me? I can spare your life you know, Trafalgar Law. Or should I say, the captain of the Heart Pirates?"_

Law snaps his fingers. That man stares at him playfully. The second time he snaps, I realize that he's actually calling me! I jump down from the aisle to the nearest vanity. I can hear the man exclaims with shock. I rush to that man, draw out my sword and place it over his neck, threaten him not to move.

_"Now tell me where's that fucking music note." _Law growls.

_"Wow wow, easy young man and young lady. Who's this? You got yourself a female knight? What's her name? Your name's Law, then she's Lawrance?" _says the man, and then bursts out laughing. I exchange a look with Law, he looks annoyed that this idiot is making fun of his name, and I'm pissed off that he thought I have a guy's name. I hold my sword closer to him, that ought to stop his laugh.

_"Order someone to bring that piece of music note over here," _Law picks up the _den den mushi_ from the smal desk and holds it in front of the man.

_"Since you say so, my apology for making you got into trouble for finding me," _he grins and make himself closer to the _den den mushi,_ _"all P.M. listen up! Come to room K.R. in ten minutes and capture a guy who wears a funny hat with two pairs of earrings and a woman who has short black hair that uses sword-"_

Before he can continue his order, I slash his throat and let him falls to the floor, lying there with his eyes open. His blood splashes to Law's face.

_"Uh... sorry..." _I apologize for my careless move, and I have no cloth or handkerchief to wipe away those blood. Law shakes his head lightly and licks the blood around his lips. My heart skips a beat at the sight of it. He's hot with that move.

_"Capoferro-ya, our identities have been exposed. Don't apologize. If you want to make up with it, bring up some solutions that can help us escape," _he uses his sleeve to wipe away the rest of the blood stains, _"we have to figure out that P.M. K.R. is krypton, the thirty-sixth element in the periodic table. That P.M... no idea. Must be something related to the periodic table too. What kind of tricks he had up in his sleeves?"_

_"Huh? P.M.? He just said all P.M... Maybe P.M. are a group of people..." _

Law takes out the sketches he made earlier. Then he looks at me like he has a big discovery.

_"I knew it! There were some rooms missing before I came here! The periodic table is not only the structures of the ship, it involves different groups of people too!"_

_"Then P.M. is...?"_

_"Poor metals. There are eighteen of them. This jerk had exposed our identities. We better escape soon."_

_"You mean jump out of the window?"_

_"No. I think we have to disguise ourselves... into nobles."_

* * *

I open up the wardrobe near the windows_. "Captain Law, tuxedos are over here."_

_"Alright, the evening gowns are all here. Pick something nice for yourself," _Law gestures the other wardrobe to me.

WEARING AN EVENING GOWN HOLLY SHIKES I NEVER WORE A DRESS SINCE EIGHT I SCARE THAT I MIGHT HAVE GOOSE BUMPS

_"Uh... can I prefer not to wear gown? It's okay for my identity to be exposed. I trained for fight, you know," _I manage to finish my sentence without trembling.

_"What's wrong? You don't like them?"_ Law throws me a skeptical glance while taking out a grey tuxedo.

_"..."_

_"If you're not going to choose, I'll choose for you," _he straightly picks out a red gown and tosses it at me.

I look at the gown. I'm too astonished to speak. A dress so beautiful it makes my throat aches, so exquisite it makes me want to cry. It has golden embroidery on the right side of the topping with crimson as background, a maroon satin around the waist, and layers of vermilion pleats.

_"Seriously, I can't wear this. It'll be ruined... by me."_

_"We have seven minutes left. You think you can make it in time before they come? Go and change behind the partition. And, don't peek while I'm changing." _Law takes off his hat and starts to undress himself.

_"I should be the one to say that," _I sigh and walk to the partition.

* * *

I have finished changing and walk out with my uniform and swords in my hands, except for my pants and boots that I'm still wearing them inside the gown. I see Law's sitting on the bed with his back on me, then he turns around and his eyes widen. Wow. That tuxedo looks good on him. Or he looks good in that tuxedo?

_"What? Worse than you expect?" _I make a face.

_"No. You look pretty," _he compliments and adds on, _"come over here. I'll help you fix your hair. Even though you have short hair but I think it's long enough to be tied up. That jerk mentioned you have short black hair."_

I look at myself through the mirror after my hair is fixed and stun. No way. Even I can't recognize myself, except for my small sharp eyes. Law helps me to put on a diamond necklace.

_"How about your 'two pairs of earrings'?" _I snicker.

_"You'll be wearing them in place of mine," _he takes off the earrings and makes two earrings into one. I put them on. Urgh. Heavy. I start to have paranoid that my ears will be torn off.

_"Throw your uniform out to the window. Bepo's waiting there. He'll take them up to the sub. And don't forget your sword too."_

I trudge towards the window. This gown makes walking a hard task. I push the window and throw my things out, hoping Bepo can catch them all. He has good reflex and I believe he's perfect for this job.

There's hullabaloo outside. We know that the P.M. are going to capture us.

Law comes close to me and places his hands on my shoulders. _"I know this will be hard for you. But we just have to act."_

_"Huh? I got C- for my-"_

Not even manage to finish the line, the P.M. strikes in. And all of them pause at the same time like someone has used a remote control to "pause" them.

Law's carrying me down close to the floor.

And he's kissing... No.

We're kissing.

* * *

**Phew. My longest chapter so far xD**


	20. Chapter 20

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**fangirl-4-evEr-xx: Next time is sleeping…. On Bepo together! xD**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Your review made me think of Ivankov. Hellu wink ;D**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: How about Valerie? xD**

**Munchkin: A review is enough; a touching review is too much! iAi u made me cried for 384932701 seconds anyway thank you!**

**UNICORNSPOORAINBOWS: I was hyperactive for a few days after I wrote that HE'S WAYYYYY TOO HOT**

**MelissaRM: Instead on the bed? hohoho**

**I'm doomed for my Chinese exam that I totally abandon it for using only English throughout this month x(**

* * *

His lips are soft and warm, but somehow they make me feel pleasantly cold. _Keep cool, keep cool, we're just acting,_ I keep repeating what's on my mind to clear things off, which is a big failure that I wrap my arms around him and pull him even closer, kissing him back desperately, like I couldn't breathe without him. I can feel his goatee brushing against my chin.

I don't know how long we have been kissing together. Somehow Law manages to pull his mouth from mine. His puts his hands around my waist, still holding me down close to the floor, and he jerks his head to the P.M. who are having culture shock watching two "nobles" kissing for free. Reminder: we're actors now, and they should pay for our acting! Speaking of which, Law's a good one. Apparently, he masters acting pretty fast.

_"Excuse me? We're having a moment." _Law shoots a stern glance to them. And... he bends down and starting to kiss me. AGAIN. This is too much. I don't think I can hold this anymore. Is this an act or a kissing marathon? GAH, I never expected that he can be a pro when it comes to kissing. I try to push him away, but the kiss hallucinates me. _Let yourself embrace him, don't think about anything at this moment. Just go with his flow._

Wait a sec- Law's piercing! Did they see it? I place my hand over his ear to cover it. The funny thing is, Law thinks that I'm trying to touch his face and he holds my hand and stroke his cheek with my palm. OH MY GOSH.

The P.M. seems to be pardon and awkward for "disturbing" us and they get themselves out of the room at once. Finally, we pull ourselves from each other and I pant heavily. Breathing hard, I look at the floor instead of him. Okay, it's embarrassing that I have to admit this is the first time I kiss a guy, not on the cheek, but on the lips.

_"Capoferro-ya, seems like our plan successes. Let's go before they come back again."_ Law strides towards the door. He stops and turn to me for I do not move an inch nor say a word. _"Capoferro-ya?"_

_"Huh? Oh... Okay..." _I think Trafalgar Law likes cucumber and he eats large amount of them. How can he be so cool after that outburst of kissing?

_"Why you look so queer? You sound like a virgin, you can drop the formalities since it's just the two of us," _he teases.

_"GAAAAHHHHH!" _I half-scream in annoyance while messing with my hair.

_"Hey, don't mess with your hair. It's hard to fix it."_

_"Do I look like I care?"_

_"Are you still a virgin?" _

I raise an eyebrow at him.

_"Just wondering."_

I'M SO CLOSE TO SLASH HIS THROAT WITH MY BARE HANDS AND HIS KISS WILL HAUNT ME IN MY SLEEP FOR MONTHS OR WORSE FOR YEARS

* * *

I follow Law to a lab with a door labeling the number "fourteen". I'm getting tired of him for being mysterious. He refuses to tell me anything he knows about this ship, that ought to give me a kick in the teeth.

_"Capoferro-ya, you stay here. I'm going in to check something out."_

_"Disagree. I'm going in too. There's no way I can leave you, your life is the most important for Heart Pirates." _I tilt my head at him.

_"How are you going to protect me without your sword?" _He glares at me.

_"Haha, sword?" _I roll my eyes, _"knight who only depends on swords is outdated. That's why we have Royal Academy of Knights. You have no nodaichi with you either."_

_"Very well."_

There's only a few operatives in the lab. All of them are aware that we're intruders and within few seconds we're surrounded. Law shoves me back and gestures me not to take in his fight with them. He finds himself a scalpel and the others laugh at him, as if he can take them down with a small blade.

_"Room." _A light blue aura sphere appears as Law smirks and it covers all of us. The operatives are shocked and wondering what's going on. I know what's going on. He's going to use his devil fruit's power! No, I don't want to be slashed into pieces and lying down like a corpse which is R.I.P _(Rest in Pieces)_.

_"Captain Law, you're not going to dismember my body again, are you?"_

_"No. But I'm going to dismember theirs. Don't worry, I won't hurt you."_

Law wields the scalpel in the air and the operatives have their bodies cut into different parts. When I realize that he's shifting his hands, the dismembered parts of bodies begin to move around us. It's extremely unusual to see what I'm seeing. _It's frightening, _that's what I'm supposed to say. Every bits of the bodies has stuck to the various part of different bodies. Wow. A body without its head has two hands as its legs. A head stuck on a conical flask. I never saw a more hilarious scene than this. My new discover about him after fifteen years.

Without their original bodies, the operatives cannot do anything but lying on the floor and grunt. Law pads across the bodies and flips through files and other documents on the shelf. Out of curiosity, I avoid all the bodies on the floor and stand beside him. He's now checking on some tubes filling with colorless liquid with syringes inside them. I can't see clearly the labeling on them as Law holds them with his fingers covering them.

Before leaving the lab, Law slips some tubes into his pockets. I have no idea if any of the tubes will come in handy.

* * *

As we walk out of the lab, the corridor comes alive with mobile shadows, eighteen of them. It's the P.M. It seems like they have found out that they were deceived by our acting and come for vengeance.

_"I'm surprised they could find out that fast. I did hide the corpse under the bed in the fitting room," _Law grabs my hand and we run blindly, _"I even chose a red gown for you to cover up the blood stain on the carpet."_

_"What? Hey, can you slow down? I think we lost them. I swear I'm not going to wear gown ever in my life again!" _

_"What makes you think that we lost them? They're just taking another path. Sadly to say but we're using a secret underground passage."_ He grins.

_"Using a secret underground passage? The P.M. are already in front of us!"_

_"Shit."_

I look around, half expecting to find a weapon or something, for I can't fight wearing a burdensome gown. I see a glimmering antique sword hanging on the wall. Not to my surprise. Nobles prefer antique weapons as interior decoration. Despite the beauty of the sword, it's quite heavy, never mind that as I have already used to the hellish training from my master.

I glance at Law. He's fighting with the P.M. without his _nodaichi. _He kicks down one of them and strikes to the nearest opponent. Another sneaks behind him and Law's not aware of it. I pluck out the diamond necklace on my neck and throw it at the sneaker. Law notices what I'm doing and beats that guy off.

_I have to fight. _Without hesitation, I strip off the pleated layers on my gown with the sword, exposing my feet which are wearing the pants and boots. I dash forward and thrust the sword straight to one's throat. Pulling it out, I slash the others' head swiftly. With my deadly attacks, I take down seven of them. The rest are Law's prey. I know Law can fight, but not this good. His movements are minimal but effective, no actions are wasted.

My legs are so weak it takes me a minute to find my balance. After Law finishes them off, he walks close to me and gestures me to sit down for a rest.

_"Too much for wearing that gown?"_

_"It's exhausting. I couldn't fight properly while wielding the sword. This gown is too tight for me, especially around the waist."_

_"Rest first. There'll be more killings to be done," _he clasps his hand on my head and pull my head down on his shoulder.

But as my head rests on his shoulder and his arm wraps around my torso, I realize that I have fallen head-over-heels for this guy. With the accelerating heart beats stand as proof.


	21. Chapter 21

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: Same goes to me :p**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Law is... unpredictable by the moment.**

**fangirl-4-evEr-xx: I update whenever I'm free, 'cause my inspiration comes as it goes. I have to be fast xD**

* * *

When I open my eyes, thinking that I have enough rest and call out _Captain Law_ but Law doesn't say anything. I lift my head up from his shoulder. He's asleep, with his arms crossed on his chest. I lean forward to scrutinize his face. His earrings are tinkling on my ears. _How can one be so good-looking when he's asleep? _I remember the last time I watched him sleeping. That was when I was bedridden after the accident fifteen years back. The dark circles under his eyes become prominent over the years. But I like them, cause I'm the reason for those faint shadows to be appeared at first.

Law's awaken, and I fall back like a startled rabbit. Maybe it's the sound from the earrings, or my inner voice that wakes him up. He studies my face, trying to catch a glimpse of something, which I do not know. He then stares thoughtfully at the ceiling, his face is a mask. Slowly, he blurts out, _"What time is it?"_

I chortle. Different expressions are passing over his face so quickly I can barely catch them all while I'm laughing, and his jaw keeps twitching back and forth. _"We don't have much time."_ He says in a low voice, letting out a yawn.

I glance up to the wall clock. _"It's two twenty- WHAT? It's five pass two? The ship has already voyaged far?" _

_"Relax. I told Bepo to follow the ship in case the ship sets sail," _Law shows me his _den den mushi._

_"Oh." _

_"By the way, I have something to tell you."_

_"What is it?" _I say quickly.

_"We have thirty-four more enemies to be eliminated." _He shows me his sketching.

_"That's okay."_

_"And we have no idea about the L.U. which probably is the whereabouts of the 'Curse of Lullaby' ". _

_"And your point is?" _What's his point for beating about the bush?

_"We have to fight the mastermind in this ship."_

He did say that the man knew everything behind this!_ "I thought that homosexual was-" _

_"Homosexual?" _He throws me a skeptical look.

_"Oh, no. I thought I killed him back in the fitting room?" _I would die if I say that he seduced a guy. HAHAHA.

_"He's not the mastermind. He's only a substitution."_

_"What the hell."_

* * *

Law and I go back to the ballroom, seeking for the musicians. For god's sake, Law is grabbing the attention of all the females. I can see their eyes are twinkling as we passes by them. I push myself through the thick crowd. As I approach the makeshift stage, I jump up to the stage and all five of them stop playing abruptly. They squeeze their eyes, trying to recall if I'm in their acquaintances' list.

_"So it's you, Valerie." _Elaine puts down her violin and sets her gaze on me, _"I think you probably take us as the bad guys by now, right?"_

_"I don't want to waste my time here. What's the L.U.?"_

_"It's the whereabouts of the music note, of course." _She snickers with her hand on her waist.

I point the sword I stole from the corridor back there at her neck._ "Speak now, or you'll be silence forever."_

_"Who's the one who's gonna be speechless?"_ She snaps her finger.

For one second I think she's calling the musicians to play music to control my senses. But then I hear a voice yelling behind me. A familiar voice.

I turn around and I'm astonished to see a shadow wielding a sword at me. I counter it fast, and I get to see my opponent's face.

Wavy blonde hair, purple pupils within that pair of beautiful eyes.

Aurora.

* * *

_"Capoferro-ya!" _Law tries to get close to the stage but he's surrounded by those cheeky young ladies.

_"It's my business, Captain Law. You should worry about yourself first." _I look back to Aurora. _"Well hello. You're on a extramural program too?"_

_"Hmm. How should I put this?" _Aurora draw back her sword, and I follow her to put my guard down. _"You exude such grace in that gown."_

_"I know that is an insincere compliment but it is still nice to hear." _Everyone wears intact clothes except for me.

_"No. I mean, this is the first time I see you wearing a dress. You look pretty. But your accessories... why you chose golden earrings? It does not match with your gown. You need to work more on your sense of fashion."_

_"It's Trafalgar Law's earrings. I'm wearing them in place of him."_

_"Why? Because you guys finally agree in an engagement so he bought you earrings?" _She mocks in her usual way. I'm relieved that she's not under control of the musician's music.

_"No. But I'm not gonna tell you that. We're enemies now."_

Aurora titters in reply.

_"You joined the nobles' plan because you're still holding your grudge against me?" _I ask.

_"Ho- Seems like you're not born yesterday." _Aurora looks genuinely sad- and hurt, too, as though I'm the one who breaks her heart. _"You left me without a word. Not even a letter. Not even a goodbye! Why? Is Trafalgar Law more important than a friend who stayed with you through ups and downs for twelve years?"_

_"Yes."_

_"You're so cruel. I thought I was the one who understands you the most in this world. But now, I feel that you're a stranger to me."_

_"You can never know everything about a person, for we each carry at least one secret."_

I don't mean for the words to come out so harshly and I wince, mentally cursing myself. It's like there's a filter set up in my brain, except instead of making things better, it twists everything around so what comes out of my mouth is totally different from what I'm thinking.

_"You're a bitch."_

_"Same goes to you."_

Aurora takes a deep breathe to calm herself down.

_"Does Trafalgar Law know that you're a noble?"_

_"Yes."_

_"Does Trafalgar Law know that you have a big scar across your abdomen?"_

_"Yes."_

_"Does Trafalgar Law know that you got C- in Dancing?"_

_"Yes." _I say the third time.

_"WHAT THE HELL YOU KEEP NO SECRETS FROM HIM!" _

_"No. He does not know that I'm a virgin."_

_"..." _

_"Maybe he did figure out that I'm still a virgin." _

_"Enough!"_

_"And he doesn't know my vital statistics."_

Aurora shakes her head and does a face-palm.

_"Just one time, Valerie! I wish that you can come back to Royal Academy of Knights! Be a noble as you would! Your dad concerns-"_

_"Shut it! You know I'll never take him as my dad! My master is my foster parent!" _Why she brings up this issue?

_"Please, Valerie. Come back. I need you. And you're the inheritor of the Capoferro family." _Aurora's eyes are watery now.

_"I'm sorry. I'm not a God, I can't make your wish comes true."_

_"Trafalgar Law is just a pirate. I know he saved you once, but that doesn't mean he'll do blood-donating or whatever for you again. People change."_

_"I know right? But I have to stay with him."_

_"Why are you so stubborn? I'm your friend Valerie!"_

_"Thank you. But there's no point for me to turn back. I'm already a pirate. You can tell my dad to disinherit my rights for his rank and positions and money. He could get himself a foster child."_

_"You're still clear off the bounty list! It isn't too late."_

_"It's already too late."_

_"What?"  
_

_"I have already fallen for Trafalgar Law." _I hear myself saying the words.

_"No way."_


	22. Chapter 22

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**kazekuro: I've been waiting for a critical review for a long time and finally... you're the one! Thanks for your guidance :)**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Oh my god how did you know they gonna fight soon?**

**fangirl-4-evEr-xx: YES YES YES xD**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: We always fight verbally with our friends :3**

**MelissaRM: She's gonna deny it if Law ever asks about it**

**UNICORNSPOORAINBOWS: Really? Glad you like it =)**

* * *

Aurora grabs my shoulders roughly and shakes my body non-stop, trying to bring back my sanity as if I have told her an awful news. Sounds crazy to declare your love for someone you just met one week ago.

I rarely read fiction, but I have read one romance fiction before, which Aurora strongly recommended it to me. In the story, a girl falls for a guy. She misses him every day, and her heart skips a beat every time she bumps into that guy. By comparison, I don't miss Law every day because I do see him every day. But my heart does beat faster for him. I'm confused too. Do I love him, or not?

And also I think that Aurora loathes me that she barks at me, revealing her deep and corrosive resentment towards me. I can establish that, as a friend, I suck. I can't think of any word to comfort her. She blames me for fucking everything.

"_Moving on past this depressing topic of your unworthiness," _Aurora stops shaking me, _"let's have a duel to sort this out. If I win, you'll be going back to North Blue with me. If you win... well, you're out of my business."_

"_I've been waiting for you to say that." _I pull out my sword instantly.

"_Aurora, you have no time for this. We're gonna start soon." _Elaine warns Aurora.

"_You're gonna start playing that piece of music?" _I ask.

"_Yes. Too bad you didn't figure that out earlier. L.U. stands for Lutetium, the seventy-first element in the periodic table. We coded it for the 'Curse of Lullaby'. You can't find the room fifty-seven to seventy-first and eighty-nine to hundred and three because they are the Lanthanoids and Actinoids, which are not grouped together with the rest of the elements. Lanthanoids and Actinoids cover the music note, the five of us here, and other knights we hired from your academy. 'Curse of Lullaby' is with us, here, all the time." _Elaine concludes by taking up a music sheet which entitled 'Curse of Lullaby' from the music stand.

(writer's note: please google the periodic table if you want to know more about it)

I should have known the moment I first met her. It's been on my mind for a while that Elaine speaks in some pretty fancy upper class accent.

She's the mastermind.

* * *

_"Captain Law! The music note is over there! The second music stand from the left!" _I shout at Law_. __"Kill Elaine, she's the mastermind!"_

_"Got it." _Law angles his head forward in the slightest of acknowledgement and beats off every noble within his reach to shake them off. Despite the tension he makes on his face, he forces his way through the crowd and gets to the stage, approaching Elaine.

_"Capoferro-ya! I allow you to fight. But bear this in your mind: Failure is not an option."_

_"I'm bound to win." _I smile, knowing that he's worried to lose his crewmate.

Elaine snickers. "_Trafalgar Law... The Surgeon of Death huh? I give you... the authority of biochemistry... Haldane Akira!" _

Haldane Akira? The doctor who discovered the efficient productivity of microorganisms? I know he was sent to the prison because of his illegal investigation of human body... He tried to clone the microorganisms of diseases and used them on animals as experiment... and he turned on to human.

_"Preemptive attack!" _Aurora comes up against my shoulder and I back off with a jump.

_"The élite of all attacks... Petain Aurora." _I say mischievously. _"How many of your attacks are going to be shown today?"_

She runs at me and swings her sword down at my abdomen and I shift my sword towards it. Before our swords clash to each other, Aurora draws back her sword and grins. _"False attack." _I feel the tip of her sword graze my left shoulder, and the next minute, she stabs her sword through my shoulder. I let out a grunt of pain.

I quickly back away. Aurora does not let up and seems to come at me even more aggressively. Fighting with her is surely a grueling task. The pain over my shoulder begins to take over my mind. I rise my sword, ready to defend myself. She cuts the air so fast it makes a swooping noise as I duck, an instant before her sword.

_"Delaying tactic!" _I slash off the heads of nobles around me, and kick their bodies towards Aurora. She screams in disgust with the blood splashes all over her. That ought to slow her down, I guess. I turn to the stage and see Law's fighting with Haldane Akira. No dice. Law's not his opponent without his _nodaichi. _Should I hand over my sword to him?

_"The élite of all tactics... Capoferro Valerie." _Aurora's eyes are blazing now. _"Your first tactic given to me was the lamest of them all! Are you underestimating me?"_

_"No. If it was the lamest tactic, master wouldn't have taught me. And, you are taken down by that tactic. Somehow."_

Aurora lunges at me again. I angle my sword to encounter her attack. But I don't see her leg coming, kicking fast to my abdomen, and sends me flying into a room, landing in the barrels. The crashing hurts my wounded shoulder a lot that I cry out. I look around. I'm in the kitchen. There's wine bursting out from the barrels, and I'm soaked with wine in no time. I keep my mouth shut to avoid the wine from flowing in. A small drop of wine can make me go crazy with no reason. Aurora witnessed that before, and she told me I would shout out names of all wines, in spite of the fact that I never drank them before.

_"Valerie? Did you sip in any wine? Valerie?" _I hear Aurora's voice filled with worries.

With that serious bleeding over my shoulder, and the accumulation of tiredness from the fights earlier, I know I won't be able to defeat Aurora. I come up with another tactic in my head. The injury over my shoulder is not the biggest challenge I have ever confronted, but the big scar over my abdomen is surely is. Enduring the pain, I struggle and drag myself out of the barrels. I will not get disappointed just because of a few losses. My next combat will be a difficult one.

_"Hahahahaha..." _I let out a hysterical laugh.

_"Valerie?"_

_"Drink dry Sherry before you have your meal, and you can enjoy sweet Sherry after the meal!"_

_"Oh shit." _Aurora thinks that I have turned into an expert in wine again. Gotcha.

_"Shock tactic and frontal assault!" _I charge towards Aurora and my sword makes contact to her right shoulder; it goes deeper into the wound as she falls to the ground.

I see her purple eyes widen in disbelief, and with a kind of righteousness that frightened every opponent of hers, except for me. Her sword drops from her hand, hitting the floor hard.

I win.


	23. Chapter 23

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone and all incidents are purely inventions.**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: It's a winning. But… there's the other one who can't let Valerie leaves xD**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Hahah, the act of calling out wines' names…**

* * *

Okay. I defeated Aurora. And I feel terribly sorry and guilty, but... I'm happy too. I can stay with Law. I can continue my voyage with Law. Aurora will go back to North Blue. Safe from a betrayal like me. No. I didn't betray her. My aim from the beginning does not change. I have to assist Law. Aurora knows that there was someone donated blood to me for blood transfusion, and she knows that I promised him to assist him someday. But she doesn't know that he's a pirate. In my opinion, being a pirate is better than being a noble who lives on a carefree life. I don't want that.

I draw out the sword from Aurora's shoulder slowly. This isn't the first time I stab her and hurt her. We trained a lot together and hurt each other more than hundred times. But I didn't hurt her purposely before, until today. And it hurts me to see her hurt like this, even though what's she did to me was more unforgivable. _"I'm sorry, Aurora."_

Aurora gently touches my arm, smiling at me. I know that she's trying to hide her pain. She squeezes my arm, sending warm tingles through me, and I can't help but stop frowning and return her smile.

_"Don't be sorry, Valerie. I wish you be happy, because it's my biggest wish. I'm also afraid you're happy, because then you will forget me." _

_"How could I forget you?"_ I maintain my smile, fighting the urge to hug her and cry out. _"I miss you all the time."_

_"Thank you. I know you got A+ in Loyalty. But I have to warn you." _Aurora's facial expression changes. She seems serious all of the sudden. _"A noble is still a noble as long as your dad doesn't take back your position. You'll be a threat soon, because you bring dishonor to your family, that you get along with pirates. Just so you know, your family is the most significant family next to tenryubito. Your dad will not let you escape that easy."_

_"My dad's a jerk. I think he's been hiding secrets from me. Secrets about our family, and myself. Why should I inherit his stupid rank? I don't want to be sent back to nobles' school again for the etiquette training. " _I did contrite deeply that I enrolled that stupid school.

_"Oh, almost forgot. I came to hand this to you too." _Aurora's searching something inside her coat. I raise an eyebrow. She hands over a folded paper. I open it up and read it.

_Certificate of Royal Academy of Knights' Graduate_

_Name: Capoferro Valerie_

_Sex: Female_

_Academy: Royal Academy of Knights' of North Blue_

_Code: BA78911-02_

_Registered subject: 5_

_-History Studies of Knights: A+_

_-Fencing, Fighting, Fortitude-3F: A+_

_-Strategy and Tactic: A+_

_-Martial Art: Karate and Kendo: A+_

_-Civic Duties: A+_

_Total Points allocated: 1392_

_Position in class: 1/20_

_Overall Position: 1/109_

_*Note: Successful graduate. Strongly recommend to join military force._

Is this real? I got straight A+ ? I blink at Aurora. _"I'm the first? First place?" _

_"Yeah. I'm the second." _She nods weakly.

_"Thank you. I'm going to frame this in my room." _I put the my certificate in my gown's pocket. Bah! Who cares joining the military force. If I join them, I'll become the World Government's dog.

_"Go now. Go and find Trafalgar Law. Wish to hear you guys are married soon." _Aurora teases.

_"Hahaha. How innocent, Aurora. You're actually expecting me to marry a hot pirate. There's no way for that. This. Is. The. Reality." _I laugh. Then, I hold Aurora's hands. _"You'll be in danger if they find out you're my best friend. You know you shouldn't be here. They'll interrogate you to find me out."_

_"Oops. I only realize that by now. So, what are they gonna do? Kill me? Fear no, Valerie. We are knights. To tell the truth, I do regret for coming so far to you. It's summer now in North Blue. And North Blue's summer are short. I should be enjoying the sunlight back there."_

_"North Blue's summer are short, but there'll be lots of things happening around." _I say. Yes. There's always lots of things happening in that short summer. I met that accident in summer. Law took care of me for that whole summer too. _"Goodbye, Aurora." _I plant a kiss on her cheek.

_"Farewell, my friend. Be careful of Elaine's subordinates out there. I did talk to them about you."_

_"About me?" _I pick up the sword I have stolen.

_"Yeah. One of her subordinates is a doctor named Haldane Akira. I told them about your fear for fever."_

_"Does that have anything to do with me?"_

_"Yes. He'll use his inventions on you. That was when I beg them to help me to get you back."_

_"Well... Law's a doctor too. He'll figure that out."_

* * *

As I walk out of the kitchen, I hear deadly music passing through my ears. It's the 'Curse of Lullaby'. Everyone around me is killing themselves. Some of them bang their heads to the wall until their heads break and strew their brains on the wall. Urgh. Some of them bite their arms and make their veins break and blood splatters everywhere. Urgh. Some of them use the wine glasses to hurt themselves to death. Urgh.

But why am I not affected? I'm listening to the music. Law is not affected too. He's still fighting with Haldane Akira. _"Captain Law, take this sword!" _I throw the sword at him. Law grabs the sword and fights with Haldane by using his power. He's gaining the upper hand now.

_"You busybody! Why did you interrupt our fight? A woman like you should never butt in men's business!" _Haldane shouts at me. I feel that his words give me a slap to my face. _A woman like me?_

Before I get my mind back, Haldane's already standing in front of me. He seizes my arm. I try to shake my arm out of his grab but fail. I'm exhausted that I have no more energy to fight back. He inserts something into my arm. I feel a tiny prick in my arm. Law speeds towards us and kicks Haldane down. Then, he holds my arm and gets a closer look to the thing on my arm.

It's a tube that has a similar shape with the tubes Law has stolen. The liquid inside the tube is flowing into my arm with a fast flow, making its volume to reach the end in no time. Law turns my arm to read the labeling. Both of us stun. Somehow, the uproar around us is fading and silence begins to take place.

The labeling says fever.

I fall down to the ground on my knee. The bacteria are spreading fast in my body. I can feel the heat sending to my whole body. Law's shouting at me, being worried that I might be dying. No, I'm sure that I'm not dying.

I'm ready to be bedridden for one week. Or more than one week. The bacteria is so strong that it could spread within few seconds.

Curses.


	24. Chapter 24

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: Yeah... but not when she was in that stupid noble school xD**

**MelissaRM: Eh? What will that be?**

**Girl-luvs-manga: For your biggest fear will come and haunt you, anytime, kekeke...**

* * *

My whole body feels like it's getting hotter and hotter, something is burning deep down inside there. The fever rises upon exertion. My brain can't function well with the increasing heat. I'm so weak that I can't move or speak out any words so I let myself lying still on the marble floor, with intense coldness sending to my cheek and the heat flowing from my body to the floor.

_"Capoferro-ya!" _Law tries to get close to me but Haldane comes between us. He's spoiling for a fight with Law. Law thrusts his sword at Haldane and Haldane back away. Law catches up to his speed and they move further and further away from me that I can hardly tell where they are. I bet it's Haldane tactic to get Law away from me to tend my sickness.

Suddenly, a _den den mushi _is thrown and landed on the floor a few inches from me. It's Law's, I recognize it. He didn't throw this at me for no reason. He wants me to call up Bepo. What should I tell Bepo? Tell him to come and help our captain? No. Tell him to snatch the music note for us? No. I reach out for the _den den mushi, _hoping to get contact with Bepo as soon as possible.

_"Hello? Captain Law?" _Bepo says quickly. The _den den mushi's_ eyes turn to resemble Bepo's cutesy eyes.

_"Bepo? It's me... Va... Valerie..." _I answer weakly.

_"Valerie? Where's Captain Law? Is he okay? Do I have to go there to get you guys out there? Did you get the music note?" _Bepo goes on with questions that make my mind blows off. It's too difficult for me to reply his questions in such state.

_"Come... and... get... me... out... of... here... I... am... die... dying..." _I squeeze my eyes as I trail off.

_"What? You're dying? How about Captain Law?"_

_"He's... fighting... Come... and... get... me... first..."_ I breath harder.

_"Hey! You have no rights to order me around! Let me speak to captain!" _

Great. I'm on the verge of dying and the die-hard-for-Captain Law Bepo still stick his loyalty to Law.

_"I pay cash!" _I blurt out after counting in my heart how much money I left.

_"I'm your slave now! Wait there!"_

* * *

Haldane seems to have finished with Law. I angle my head lightly and find Haldane squatting down next to me, letting out shrieks of a fiendish laughter as he grabs my bangs hard enough to lift my head up and scrutinize my face. _"How does it feels like? Worse than being in the hell? Dreading to die soon?"_

I look away, ignoring him with my eyes shut. _Law, what happened to you?_

_"Your best friend was a fool... She begged me to bring you back for her, disregard whatever method I'll use. Now, your last resort has failed your expectation. Trafalgar Law can't save you. Be a good girl and let us send you back to your daddy, huh?"_

Anger takes over me with the exacerbating fever. I squirm to loose myself from him but I'm crystal clear that it's a fruitless attempt.

_"Exile! Take her with you!" _Haldane shouts at someone nearby. Exile? He came here with Aurora?

Another man gets closer to us and scoops me up in his arms, as easily as if I weigh ten pounds.

_"No, Exile... Put... me down!" _I protest. How am I suppose to tell him that I had a duel with Aurora and she agreed to free me?

_"I'm really angry Valerie. You lied to me that you were going for a students' exchanging program. It turned out that you're hanging out with pirates! Where is your righteous as a knight?" _He carries me over his shoulder.

_"Captain Law! Trafalgar Law!" _I go berserk and cry out, not sure if he can hear me or not. Exile rushes at full speed and I can tell he's going to lock me up in a room even though I don't know where is he carrying me to.

_"PUT DOWN CAPOFERRO-YA OR I'LL SLASH YOU INTO MILLION PIECES!" _

_"Law!" _Damn. I feel the sudden stab of tears at the back of my eyes. He's sprinting towards us and I can conclude that he's fine. Oh-uh. Exile runs faster and faster and Law seems quite far away from me now. Exile trains hard like me, I'm not surprised he can run this fast. Maybe I'll use the reverse psychology on Law.

_"Captain Law! Trafalgar Law! Triangle Law! Linear Law! Hooke's Law! Law of reflection!"_

_"Just shut up will ya? Did you study sciences 'til you're crazy?" _Exile gives me a slap to my butt.

_"Eeek! Law, he's molesting me!"_ I cry out. And Law sprints so fast that he's only a few meters away from us.

I see Law's face darken, and he swings the sword in his hand for testing its sharpness. _"ROOM!"_

_"What the hell is this circle- WOAAAARRRRGGGHHHH!"_

Law cuts Exile and me into broken pieces, then he lets the blue sphere disappears.

_"My fault to make you a comedian again." _Law grins as he collects my body's part, freeing my butt from Exile's hand. Urgh.

_"Trafalgar Law! I'm not finish with you yet!" _Haldane approaches Law behind him, in his hand is a fireplace poker.

_"Aye ya ya ya ya ya!"_

Here comes the cute polar bear, kicking the face of the bastard out of our way and shouting, _"Aye!"_

_"Bepo!" _I exclaim. His white fur are partially drenched with blood, from the nobles who are committing suicide. He surely needs a good bath to rid of those blood stains. Law has put my body parts together in one piece but I'm still weak to move myself.

_"Wow, Valerie. You surely need a good bath to rid of those blood stains," _says Bepo. His voice sounding worried but slightly amused.

_"Huh?" _Why am I the one who needs to be bathed? I look down on my body, and I find out that I'm a hybrid of red colors. Maroon from the wine, vermilion from my wounded shoulder, and dark red from the dried blood of the nobles around me. Let alone the red gown I'm wearing.

_"Bepo! Take Valerie back to the sub! She's having a fever." _Law shouts. He himself is stained in bloodred too, together with his tuxedo. What a waste. I watch him sprints toward Haldane, who is now stretching out his limbs flat on the floor. Law takes out the tubes he has stolen, uncaps the cover, revealing a syringe. Then he gives the injection to Haldane.

Bepo carries mein his arms. _"What the hell, Valerie. You're warmer than me under these fur." _He avoids all the people around us and darts swiftly, and we leave the gaily decorated ballroom and we're on the deck of the ship now.

_"Bring me to the sub... or else I'll turn into a corpse... in your arms in no time." _I give a snort. The funny thing is, I feel protection in Bepo's arms.

_"Eeeeek! Don't do that! You haven't pay me yet!"_ He makes a slightly rude sound.

* * *

As we reach the sub, Bepo places me on the deck, lying my head against the wooden fence. The wind begins to shift. Its force becomes strong, picking up until my hair streams straight out to the left, and my torn gown's pleated sheet flapping against my body.

_"I need... water..."_ I groan, sounding annoyed.I shiver, for I never fell so cold with the heat content in my body. I'll just have to show the white feather when it comes to fever. I become more of a hindrance than a help. I scroll through the memories in my mind. When was the last time I had fever?

_"Valerie! Here's your water, with the aspirin. " _Shachi hands me a glass of warm water and a pill, patting my arm and tells me not to worry. _"Captain Law is going to be here soon._ _We're going to handle your wounds first, is that okay?"_

_"Yeah..." _It's getting cold, so I'm happy to oblige. Shachi and Penguin are skillful in the use of bandages and medicine. They stop the bleeding of my shoulder instantly, and put on some medicine to ease down the pain. I'm surprised to know that they're not only adept in mechanics but in medical treatment too.

_"Don't be too hard on yourself, Valerie. The aspirin only reduces your fever." _Penguin says as I try to get myself on my feet.

_"Aspirin will never do me any favor. I need one week to recover from fever." _I shoot him a stern glance.

_"One week? Captain Law is going to be mad of this. How come you could catch a fever on the ship?"_

_"We met Haldane Akira..."_

_"Okay, that explains." _Shachi's voice cuts across mine. Everyone knows Haldane, isn't it? The biggest criminal in the medical field. And now he's the biggest asshole I have met so far.

A cracking echoes through the air, follows by a tinkling that I don't understand. The sound's coming from everywhere, so it's hard to place right away. But then it looks like the sky above us is raining glitter, and a few bodies crash to the deck of our sub. Bepo realizes what is happening before the rest of us do. Shachi gathers everyone on the ship in the corner. Penguin holds me in place. More dark figures fall through the broken fence on the ship, landing on our sub, sending their blood to our faces.

_"Hey, they're not invited to our sub." _Bepo steps forward and kicks the dead bodies into the sea.

I glance up and see Law's fighting with other knights that are sent from the same academy of mine. _"Yes!"_

_"Why the 'Yes!', Valerie?" _Bepo asks, blinking his cutesy eyes.

_"You dumbo! Didn't you see Captain Law has finally got the music note in his hand?" _Shachi and Penguin yell at Bepo.

_"Sumimasen."_

_"So easily defeated!" _Shachi and Penguin cry out together.

_"Anyway, hooray for our captain! Yeah!" _

_"The three crates of gold! Hooray!"_

_"Ten million beri, hooray!"_

_"I don't think that ten million beri is enough. Our captain has a bounty of 200 million beri," _says Bepo.

We watch Law fights together in silence, knowing that he'll come back and announce the victory. As he's taking down the knights in front of him, there's a knight coming sideways and thrust his sword at Law's arm. Law retreats his arm automatically, releasing the music note from his grip. Law's eyes widen. He can't jump out to fetch the music note that he'll fall into the sea. That will be a headache for he's a devil fruit user.

_"Oh NOOOOOO!" _The trios scream in desperate.

Without hesitation, I loose myself from Penguin's hand and climb up to the sub's fence.

_"No no no no! Valerie, come down! What are you trying to do? You're sick now!"_

_"To get... that music... note of course!"_

I throw myself out of the sub, and fetch the music note in the air. I take the barrette off my hair, clipping it to the music note and toss it at the direction of the sub's deck. Bepo's a good boy. He does a good job in catching the note without fail. I assume he'll come and save me too, that I go splash into the water without fail.

* * *

**If you guys did wonder, well... I went party hard to celebrate the end of the exam with my friends. And... if you read the latest One Piece manga, let's cheer together! Law defeated Vergo! OH MY GOD I'M SO DAMN HAPPY! *FANGIRL EMOTION***


	25. Chapter 25

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Loyalty over a contract...**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: Nice nickname you have for Valerie xD**

**MelissaRM: Thanks for waiting patiently, I hope you like this!**

* * *

No pun intended, I'm going overboard, because of Law. The dark water does not look inviting. I draw in a deep breath and hold it before I plunge into the icy water, which will exacerbate my fever, of course. The cuts and bruises I have sustained from the fights earlier begin to burn as they come in contact with the sea water. I can swim. In fact, I'm an excellent swimmer. But the severe injury over my shoulder can cause affliction even if I swipe my arm lightly against the flow of water, and so I have to restrict myself not to irritate the wound, makes me no different from a landlubber.

It's still dark out there. There's no brightness to direct me upward. The cold of the water is numbing my arms and legs. I force my legs to kick harder but I can sense that I'm leaving the surface further and further. With blurred vision I catch a glimpse of pennant-shape things moving around me. _Shark? _SHARKS! Did my blood flow out and diffuse into the water? No, I don't think so. Shachi and Penguin did treat my wound perfectly. It would be...

_My gown._ There's large pile of blood stains on my gown as I recall. Damn it.

Well, I suppose I can say that I accomplished what I have set out to, after all. The music note is already in our hand. Come and get me Mr. Shark. I have no regrets. I have met Law, became his subordinate, and yes, assisted him. I close my eyes, waving my hand to the world I can't reach as a goodbye.

My last breath whooshes out of my lungs, escaping in countless white bubbles. As I'm giving up my hope to continue my life, an arm with enormous energy grabs me at my wrist, and plunges me towards the surface of the sea at full tilt. I choke the salty liquid out of my throat, clutching myself to the arm which has saved me.

_"Be...po?" _I cough.

_"Valerie, for once I beg you, don't ever do this to me, again. You never see Captain Law went berserk but this time, you got the chance."_ Bepo sighs.

Yeah, true. I never see Law angry or mad before. But hey, this polar bear has ruined the whole thing. It is so unromantic to be saved by a cute polar bear. Anyway, he saved my life. Polar bears are great swimmers, and Bepo's wearing an orange jumpsuit that scared off those sharks. No, I do not sound like some crappy summary of some mystery novel. The intensity of the orange scares the shark. And I think Bepo is the one who is responsible to save Law if he ever drown into ocean.

How much should I pay him for all of these?

* * *

_"War... Warm... war... water..." _I splutter. I'm freezing as Bepo lifts me up to the sub and puts me on the deck.

_"Warm water, here it comes!"_

I raise my hand up to reach for the glass of water I expected. Instead of a glass of warm water, a big flood of warm water splash over me. I can't see anything but water. I'm afraid that I will get diagnosed with hydrophobia, over my fear for dehydration. I cough out more water, my last motion, before the world turns black.

* * *

I return to myself slowly, as if trudging uphill through a long and narrow tunnel. It's dimly light, yet not entirely dark, because it seems to me that I see faces of companions I have known and loved, passing in and out of focus as I walk.

I see Aurora's face most often. Next come an ancient, wrinkled face I do not recognize. And every once in a while, when the tunnel seems most steep and endless, when it seems to me that I cannot take another step, I think I see the face of Law. He gazes down at me with an expression I cannot read save for the sorrow in his gray eyes.

Once I think I open my eyes to see him sitting beside me, head bows down, cradling in his hands the _nodaichi _he has given to Bepo after he finished to disguise himself into a noble.

And finally there comes a series of days when the tunnel proves too dark and steep to travel at all. It's then that I'm seized by a great fire in my limbs, when my ears grow deaf and my eyes grow blind. And in those days I cannot even wonder whether my journey has, at last, reached its end. I can form no questions, for I'm lost, even to myself.

Swimming up through layers of sleep, when I open startled eyes, it's to light that is the color of an elephant's tusk, a color that I recognized, and I know I have awakened just before dawn. For several moments I lay absolutely still, searching for some clue to my surroundings, staring upward as the light grows stronger. The answer comes almost at once. I'm in my own room on the sub, lying on my bed. My body feels... unfamiliar. I shift, and feel pain shoots through my shoulder.

And at this the memories come flooding back. Memories of blood and pain, the screams of nobles, the struggles in the sea water. I make a sound of protest, and in an instant Law is here, hunkers down beside my bed. I quickly cover myself under the blanket to avoid his intimidating eyes.

_"You could have been dead, you know,"_ I hear his sigh.

_"I'm still living. Thanks for your concern."_ From the sultry I know that my fever has not broken yet.

_"Capoferro-ya. Stop being reckless. I am the captain. And you should not take action without my command." _He pleads.

I bite my lip."I_ did not act reckless. You've got the music note. Now stop annoying me. What makes you so bossy all of a sudden?"_

_"If I'm bossy," _Law pauses, and continues in a low, intense voice, _"it's because I'm worried about you. Is that so wrong? And you are not like other people. You are unpredictable. You always have been, Capoferro-ya. If I'm warning you, it's only for your own good."_

I feel my heart gives a great leap into my throat. _Trafalgar Law is worried of me?_

_"..."__  
_

_"I found this crested paper in your gown. Do you want to keep it?" _He asks.

_"Paper?"_ I leap up from the blanket instantly, and Law is holding a crumpled paper that is completely wet. _"Nooooooo! My graduate certificate!" _I scream, feeling the back of my eyes filled with tears.

_"Graduate certificate?" _Law narrows his eyes at me.

_"Aurora gave it to me after I fought with her." _I say under my breath.

_"Aurora? Who was that?"_

_"My best friend from the same academy... She was summoned to the ship for civic duties."_ I answer.

_"I see. I was wondering why there were people who wore the same uniform as you do."_

_"Wait, what happened to the ship? Did they sail off safely?" _Most importantly, is Aurora safe now?

_"Yeah, I killed all the musicians before I snatched the music note. Then I saw a marines' ship approaching. I think the marines has already got the situation on the ship under controlled. I'm sure all of them will be sent back to where were they from, including your friend."_

I try to speak but manage only a croak because my mouth and throat are parched. As if he understands, Law steps away briefly and then returns with a glass of warm water. I can take no more than a little, for in all my thirst I'm weak and clumsy. Water dribble down my chin and down into my neck.

_"Open your mouth."_ Law orders me. I'm a patient, so I follow his order. He inserts a thermometer into my mouth and checks the reading after few minutes. _"41.2... You better get some sleep and rest."_

_"Why?" _I ask.

_"Your body temperature only drops by 0.3 degree Celsius." _He casts me a stern look.

_"I told you I need one week to get fully recover when it comes to fever." _I slip into my blanket.

_"Don't get yourself into fever next time. It causes me a big headache. I'm a surgeon, not a clinical doctor who gives you sweets after you promise me to take your medicine __regularly."_

_"Yeah, yeah, yeah..." _I roll my eyes.

Silence fills the room. Then I hear Law's footsteps. He switches off the light and walks out of my room.

I blink against the tears that fill my eyes, but I can't no longer hold it and so I let myself weep like a child, burying her head in the blanket.

_He does not forget that I can't sleep with the lights on. He remembers it._


	26. Chapter 26

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: Thanks! xD**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Not when you're drown... =p**

* * *

I have no idea how long I have been lying here. By the time I have awaken from my solidly sleep, I find that it's agonizing to leave my bed. I'm lack of vim, and lazy to move, of course. I have a crick in my neck from overslept. Normally I get freaked out if I'm forced being indoor for most of the time. Although North Blue has long winters, I insisted going out for a walk, saunter along the hills to catch sight of the snow coming down to earth one by one. Aurora would chide me for not bundle up myself in enough clothes. I would ignore her, coz' I was sure winter was one of my best friends. I'll never catch fever in winter, not even once.

Come to think of it, I had no problem at all, to be trained in the snow. The thick snow that covered the ground didn't make much obstacles for me to move swiftly and wield my sword. Master said I performed so well that he believed I was the child of snow. In my opinion, he is more like a snow king, for he has pure white hair that no one in the town can be compared. He'll never be a Santa Claus. He has no Santa Claus's significant beer belly.

_I miss them. _I push the words out of my mind quickly, and kick the blanket off my feet. The thirst wins the struggle. I drag myself ungainly to get to the door. One... Two... Three... Four... Five... Six... Seven... So much for my fever. Seven steps to the door, to the world outside is now a laborious task for me. I put my hand on the latch, squeeze to lift it upward. As the door swings open, the sun cuts into the room, temporarily dazzling me. It's already evening, everything turns into bright orange, not to mention my skin with pale complexion. The sunlight on the water is quick and bright.

_"Capoferro-ya, you're not well enough to be up for long periods of time," _Law strides at once to where I'm standing,_ "the fever hasn't passed it crisis."_

_"Where are we now?" _I ignore his admonishment. What's the point of being bedridden when my body eats time up for its condition to be improved?

_"Still at Armonny. I was just asking Mr. Drenk's help to use music therapy to help you get over from your fever," _Law answers.

_"..." _I scoot past him feebly and make my way to the canteen. Aside from winter, water is my best friend too.

_"Where are you going?"_ Law's voice rings behind me.

_"To get water." _I reply shortly.

_"Get back to your room. I'll go get you the water."_

_"Control freak."_

_"Inscrutable knight."_

* * *

A violist is arranged to carry out the music therapy for me. After listening to his play, I sense nothing different, nor do I'm touched by his music. My body is still aflame with the heat. For a while we just remain silence. Law inserts the thermometer into my mouth again and checks the scale reading. _"41.0."_

_"Huh? What's going on? It doesn't happen this way!" _I can tell that the violist is utterly shocked for his failure. Mr. Drenk looks puzzled too, as though they're confused by my condition. I tilt my head up to look at Law. He's rubbing his chin to sort things out. His face suddenly stark white, and he begins to bring out the issue of the tubes of Haldane Akira. That's the moment I understand why I wasn't affected by the melodies of the deadly 'Curse of Lullaby'. That's the moment I understand why the music couldn't cure my fever.

Law had given both himself and me an injection when I was asleep on his shoulder. It was a type of injection that make people immune to musics. Haldane Akira would probably need a resolve if the musicians betray him. And so he invented the injection. And now I'm immune to music, so is Law. Speaking of unexpected surprises. BIG SURPRISES.

I struggle to keep my face composed. Inside, I feel like a tire has burst, totally deflated. All thanks to Haldane's painstaking research and Law's considerate. But I can't blame anyone. If I was fast enough to dodge his attack... Sigh. My argument is invalid. I have to stay in bed for one week as usual when fever strikes. Law's leaning on the door with his arms crossed, looking at me with an unreadable expression.

_"What?" _I ask as I avert my gaze.

_"Nothing."_

Awkward. I hate awkward. Out of my own will, my mind flashes through the moment we kissed. There goes my heart again, running crazily. Shucks, this is BAD. Must. Not. Look. At. His. Lips. I fix my gaze straight ahead, nothing the plain wall, the round windows, the scener-... _Oh my gosh, please stop showing that grin! _Wait, why am I looking at it again? Noooo. I'm going nuts here. Just a moment ago, I can't look at him. Now, I can't take my eyes off those sinful lips. I'm... going... crazy... Then I realize Mr. Drenk has left my room with the violist. I'm alone. With Law.

I tuck my blanket to cover my whole body. That ought to keep him out of my sight. NO. Stop it, brain. Stop thinking about him. I don't want to think about him. I have somehow managed to reach this age without being passionately kissed and he's the first one to do it. ARRGGHHH. I sound like a love-struck puppy. WOOF.

_"Hey,"_ Law says playfully, _"it's a good idea to cover yourself over in the blanket. Sweating helps to reduce fever."_

_"I know right." _I say.

* * *

Bepo, Shachi and Penguin take turns caring for me, bringing me nice meals and changing the bandage on my wounded shoulder. Law keeps as eye on me while I sleep, testing my forehead when I awake.

_"We're leaving Armonny." _Law informs me after frowning at the thermometer. My body temperature drops by merely one degree Celsius.

_"Soon?"_ What the hell. I can't look at him in the eyes. It's just the two of us. Luckily his eyes are focused on a medical book.

_"Now. We're on our way to the next island. I can't wait until you're fully recovered. And... Mr. Drenk has a gift for you."_

_"A gift?"_

_"Yeah. He asked me if you play any musical instruments. I said guitar. And you got a guitar."_

_"Why would a pirate play guitar?" _I wonder if it can be enjoyable while I'm playing that I'm no longer moved by music. To tell the truth, I don't mind having blisters on my fingers. It was mom who encouraged me to take up guitar lessons.

_"To entertain the rest of the crew. You're a comedian." _He chuckles lightly.

_"Am not."_

_"How many people have you killed?"_ Law asks with a grin.

_"How many people have you saved?" _I ask, retaliate.

_"Donno."_

_"Donno." _I mimic his voice.

* * *

It's been two days after we left Armonny. But my fever makes no sign of progress. Bepo sits beside me, looking down on me with weary face.

_"Valerie. 34000 beri is not enough for me to save you from drowning and babysit you while you're sick," _Bepo teases.

_"Captain Law earned 10 million beri and three crates of gold back in Armonny. Perhaps you can ask some money from him." _I make a face.

_"Heck no. Those money are going to be used to purchase supplies for our sub. Tell me anything that had happened back on the 'Element'."_

_"Nope, I'm not gonna tell ya'."_

_"Was there something happening between you and Captain Law?"_

_"No...Nothing." _I swift my eyes. Urgh. How could I possibly tell him about the... kiss?

_"You can't get away from me! I saw you were wearing Captain Law's earrings. And he took them off pretty fast after I saved you."_

NO NO NO DON'T BUG ME YOU CUTE-TURNING-INTO-EVIL POLAR BEAR

_"..."_

_"Ah-ha! You like Captain Law, I remember you told me that! And now... You love him?"  
_

_"NOOOOOOOO! Get out from my room now!"_

_"Both of you were dancing on the first night we arrived at Armonny..."_

_"RAWR! Enough!"_ My head is going to explode before I can come up with a proper answer.

_"Sumimasen. Okay, you don't love him." _Bepo shows his usual apologizing face.

_"Good boy."_

_"But that doesn't mean you'll not love him in the future."_

_"..."_

_"Wanna bet?" _Bepo challenges me.

_"Of what?"_

_"One million beri says you're gonna fall in love with him." _He chirps merrily.

What the hell. I have only 400000 to 490000 beri left. Fine. I'm filthy rich. My dad isn't gonna find out about what I'm doing now that soon. I'll have Aurora cash out some money from my deposit if I lose the bet. Meh. Who says I love him? A kiss is nothing biggie. Yeah, right.

_"You're on." _I smirk.


	27. Chapter 27

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: Is he?**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Yay, we're on team Bepo! xD**

* * *

Shachi and Penguin are sitting on wooden chairs which they carried from the canteen of the sub beside my bed, pledging sincerely to take good care of me. Well, they should quit the "I swear I will have my eyes on you coz' you're the apple of my eye" or "Valerie don't die I need you". It's just a fever. A small part of my mind appreciates their kindness of taking care of me. But the other part of me tells me I should shut them up so I can have a good rest and that will make me some kind of ungracious woman. I refuse to do so. They're my crewmates.

_"Listen. I don't care if you guys swear to die for me or whatever. Spare me that gallantry, please," _I pause, _"maybe you can read me some stories in spite of wasting your saliva on those flowery words. Or some good jokes, perhaps."_

Shachi's face brightens. _"Valerie, I'm happy to read for you! Let's see... I'll go to the storeroom to find some masterpiece..."_

_"No, no. You stay here and look after Valerie. I'll go get it." _Penguin volunteers and scuttles out of the room.

It's already the fifth day since I was confined to bed, and I get to know more about this pirate crew. This Heart Pirates is all but crewmates that like women and are interested in women very much, except for me, Bepo and the captain, of course. They're skilled in martial arts, medical and mechanics, like to flirt to boot. Shachi and Penguin will tell me stories about their journey from North Blue to Grand Line, those time when I was not one of them. I often have questions towards the things they say but I'll just keep it to myself. Why would Law name his crew Heart Pirates? How did Bepo learn to talk? And anything related to Bepo reminds me of Shiloh, my horse-as-sword precious weapon. Oh well.

If they're skilled in martial art, I would like to watch them fight. Pity me, they're unobtrusive about what they can do and what they can't do. I've only seen Law's fight and his peculiar devil fruit power scares me. I'm destined to be victimized by him every time he shows off his power. Do the rest of the crew fight well too? I tell myself I'll just wait. Maybe there'll be a great fight on the next island. Who knows?

Penguin's back with a thick, musty book in his hand. I raise my eyebrow. What kind of masterpiece will that be? Before I can take a peek of the book's cover, Penguin sits beside Shachi and Shachi blocks the view. Then, Penguin clears his throat, looking nervous and begins, as if he's going to have a grand performance.

_"I never thought I'd find myself_

_the day that I found you_

_Plans for only_

_one of me_

_are future plans for _

_two._

_Soul mates in this universe_

_that make the world surreal._

_For when I'd given up on dreams_

_you showed me love is real._

_And now that all my love for you_

_will never cease to grow,_

_please take me in your loving arms_

_and never let me go."_

_-Two of me by Anne G. Fegely_

OH SHIT I CAN FEEL THE GOOSE BUMPS CRAWLING ALL OVER MY SKIN MY BODY IS THAT WHAT YOU CALLED MASTERPIECE IT'S POETRY THAT IS SO OVERLY ROMANTIC POEM SAPPY CORNY TO THE EXTENT WHY YOU HAVE TO READ STUFF LIKE THAT JESUS CHRIST WHOSE YOUR SOUL MATE AND WHEN DID I SHOW YOU SIGN OF LOVE OH MY GOODNESS MY ARMS AIN'T LOVING THEY'RE FULLED WITH SCARS AND I AM WILLING NOT TO LET YOU GO SO I CAN STAB YOU TO DEATH

Curses. Shachi thinks that Penguin is grabbing my attention. He snatches the poetry from Penguin and reads out loud another for me, with some melancholic tone and expression.

_"Your approach..._

_Mine eyes behold_

_The view you're gracing_

_Your beauty unfold_

_My heart starts racing_

_Your Encroach..._

_The tension grows_

_While towards pacing_

_Your radiance flows_

_It's fear I'm bracing_

_My approach..._

_The entrancement_

_Has my mind failing_

_Your smile's enhancement_

_Sends my heart sailing_

_My reproach..._

_I'm insecure_

_My secret endure_

_Eyes opened?"_

_-Unwillingly crushed by Udiah_

I'M TOTALLY SPEECHLESS BECAUSE I CAN CURSE ALL THE WAY INSIDE MY MIND I'M GOING TO PUKE REAL SOON I AM NOT A BEAUTY AM NOT AND I DON'T SENSE MY RADIANCE FLOWS THAT I HAVE NONE AND IT'S NOT A SECRET ANYMORE THAT YOU DECLARE IT OPENLY TO ME SHACHI OH SHACHI PLEASE IT'S SURELY IS FEAR YOU ARE BRACING IF YOU CONTINUE THIS SHIT ON AND ON BY THE TIME YOU BEHOLD MY SWORD

* * *

_"40.5... Not bad. Still, you're not allowed to be out of bed," _Law turns his head and places the thermometer back on the small table._  
_

_"I won't mind that if you're the one to accompany me," _I sigh for what had happened this afternoon.

Law looks amused, with a sneaky grin strikes across his face. _"I thought Shachi and Penguin did a great job to look after you?"_

_"Get yourself bedridden for the whole five days. Make them read stupid poems beside you and see if you can stand it." _I say sulkily.

_"Stupid poems? About love?" _Law laughs.

_"They don't even understand what love is. It seemed that they thought they're experts by reading some sappy poems." _

_"And you think that you understand love?" _Law yawns. He adjusts his Northern-styled hat as he sits beside me.

_"Not really... No." _I let my head resting on my knees and wrap my arms around my legs.

_"Lesson number one! Capoferro-ya, define 'love'." _Law's impersonating a teacher's tone. I snicker at him.

_"They say love is blind."_

_"And what would you say?"_

_"When we're in love, we tend not to see the bad side of our loved one. Sometimes, even the worst person becomes the best person in your belief." _I dare myself to look into his eyes as I let those words out of my lips. _"Love is not blind, it sees, but it doesn't mind."_

_"Hmm... Acceptable, but not precise..." _Law says in a contemplative mood, with his right hand over his mouth.

_"May I know the correct answer?" _I give a snort, as if he knows very well about "love".

_"Love... is giving up a part of yourself and allowing that part to be filled by someone else. It's when your heart feels bigger than your body, because it's filled with trust and confidence and appreciation of one other special person. It's being able to communicate without a word and forgive unconditionally." _Law says softly with his eyes closed.

Oh my god. How on earth he managed to marshal his mind and make out that... answer? I know he isn't saying that purposely for me but, I'm touched, somehow. You know the feeling you have when you read a good book and it has a good ending like no other books? That's it. That's the kind of feeling.

_"We're going to dock on the next island soon." _After a moment of silence, Law mutters.

_"How fast it will be?" _I ask.

_"Less than twenty four hours. By then you'll be the last to explore the island." _Law chuckles.

_"This. Is. So. Unfair." _I emphasize each word with hatred_. "Isn't there any other ways to reduce my fever as soon as possible?"_

_"Did you sweat a lot these days?"_

_"No." _All I did was sleep, eat, rest, crap with Bepo... not to mention I had to get some crap from Shachi and Penguin too.

_"I told you to get yourself sweating in order to reduce that damn fever!" _

_"Does lying on the bed all the long help?" _I'm pissed that he yells at me all of a sudden.

He slouches in the chair, with his fist clenched. _"I have a plan. You can sweat a lot to reduce the fever, depends on whether you want to try it or not." _Law shoots me a tentative look.

_"I remember you said that when your plan was wanting me to carry you on my back to get us on the 'Element'." _I glare at him, _"you want me to do that again to get myself sweating? With fever? Nice joke, Captain Law. Hahaha..."_

_"No. I mean... I'm going to sleep with you tonight." _Law jerks his head to avoid my glare. WHAT?!

_"You... pervert." _Is this some kind of prank that Bepo play on me with Law to make me fall in love with Law to get that one million? And Law has a share of the half million?

_"Whatever you say. I'm not going to have sex with you." _He snickers. The next minute he takes off his hat and pushes me to the right side of my bed so he can get some space for himself.

_"NO NO NO NO! Get out!"_

It was a nightmare the last time I slept with a guy, with my cousin Exile. That was when I was eight, Exile was eleven. He stayed over at my house for holidays. Mom forced us to sleep together as that was the first time Exile visited my house and he made an excuse that he was scared of the new environment. He needed someone to sleep with him. I knew he was lying with that hidden grin. He was a big bully back in the old days. He took as much space as possible on the bed and I had the least share of my blanket. He nearly kicked me off my bed, and I had to clutch tightly to the bed sheet so I would not fall and hit the floor.

I kick Law and I know it's useless. He'll not be taken aback by my lousy kick that I have not much energy. Law grabs my arm and pulls me to his chest, wrapping his arms around my torso.

_"Sleep now, Capoferro-ya."_

_"How am I gonna sleep in your arms? Let go off me!" _My chest's constricted. I doubt that I can hold this for more than five seconds.

_"Room." _The lights in my room go off after Law uses his devil fruit's power. _"Just sleep."_

I bite my lips and curl myself, resting my head beside his chest. My ear is listening close to his heartbeat. He's the most unstable person I've encountered. Even my master is better. I hate myself being a woman. And now I understand my father's notion for he always wanted a son, badly. I rather myself to be a man. But I'm not. I was restrained from climbing the trees. I was scolded when I refused to wear skirts and dresses. I had to stand those inquisitive eyes after I got my hair cut real short. And now, I'm having funny feelings to sleep with Law.

I begin to feel warmer and warmer. Sweats are running down on my forehead. My head is spinning and my heart is palpitating. I can feel my cheeks is killing me. I will die. No, I will not fall for him. I will not fall for him. I will not fall for him... _Sumimasen_, Bepo. I WILL NOT FALL FOR THIS DAMN CONTROL FREAK.


	28. Chapter 28

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**asdfghjkl: Thanks for your review =)**

**Girl-luvs-manga: first task which is not given by captain xD**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: glad you like it, thx for your support =)**

**MelissaRM: KYAAAA *fangirl emotion***

* * *

The next morning, I wake up starving, lying in Law's arms, feeling all but wet and clammy. It's so hot and close. My shirt is soaked with sweat. Even though I'm sweaty and smelly, Law's seems comfortable sleeping with me. There's a conspicuous water stain on his hoodie, right exactly on the Heart Pirates' Jolly Roger, the smiley face which is indecipherable. My fingers skim lightly across the water stain. What is it? Frustrated by my sweaty bangs which is covering my left eye, I brush them like I'm shooing flies away. Wait, my forehead has some sweat droplets. Then the water stain on Law's hoodie... is from my sweat? This is so disgusting. I can imagine him scolding at me as he would when I made stupid mistakes in maths exams when we were kids, though he often scored perfect for maths exams and should be leaving me alone, off to celebrations. He will force me to do his laundry for few days... No, maybe for weeks. I'm totally useless when it comes to chores. I'll get his clothes torn and he'll extend the punishment: do his laundry for years. Why must I live in a life plagued with drama and adversity?

I test my forehead. It feels cool like I'm not having a fever. My fever has broken, by the sixth day. A miracle. I have conquered fever! What a day! I can get off my bed now. I can walk on my feet now. I can wield my sword now. I can kill hundreds of people now. Oh my gosh. While I'm immersed in my happiness of my recovery, I hear commotion reverberates from the next room across the bathroom. It's Law's room.

_"Where's Captain Law? He's not in his office and I thought he would be in his room." _That's Shachi's voice. Law's the only one who has two rooms on his own. He's the captain, of course. One room as office, another one as bedroom. I have never been to his office before. His bedroom... Well, I did sneak a peak before. That was when I called him to treat Mr. Drenk's wound.

_"Maybe he's in Valerie's room? He was the last one to take care of her last night. Did he fall asleep in her room?" _Penguin speaks out.

_"Noooooooo. Captain Law... overnight... Valerie's room... No... I can't take it!" _This time is Shachi and Penguin's yelling together. I rub my forehead, feeling helpless and hopeless for their affections for me.

_"We should go and check out in her room." _Bepo says. I'm overwhelmed by nervous. What will they think if they see Law is sleeping on my bed? The situation will turn utterly awkward. I have to explain everything to them. And I hate explaining things. I turn my head. Law's still asleep, calmly. Unlike me, worrying about my pride and... my one million beri. Bepo will get things worse. He'll say that I have fallen for Law so I agreed to let him sleep with me. And Law will ask about the one million beri. And Shachi and Penguin will be heart-broken badly. And they will fight with Bepo. This is not good. I try to wake Law up, but he won't budge. I make the hardest decision: Carry him into the bathroom!

I'm glad that my fever has broken and my energy is back. I can carry him easily, open the bathroom's door, place him in the bath tub, close the door, walk back to my bed, pretend to be asleep. Huh? Law's hat! On my desk! I quickly stuff it under my pillow and close my eyes. There comes the noise from the door. Brace yourself to a war of debate, Capoferro Valerie!

_"Va...lerie?" _Penguin whispers.

He thinks I'm asleep. So I act like I'm asleep and awakes by his voice. My body ascends slowly. I let out a big yawn, running my fingers through my hair, twisting it around my fingers. _"Yes?" _

_"Did... you see Captain Law?" _Penguin's face reddens. Shachi moves his hand over his nose to stop the nose from bleeding. Bepo sends me an annoyed look. Of course, he's afar from that one million beri. Kekeke...

_"No. Why?" _I say shortly.

_"We couldn't find him in his rooms..."_

_"I heard sounds came from the bathroom earlier... Maybe he's taking a bath?"_

_"Oh. We shall check the bathroom then." _

After a moment of silence, another commotion.

_"Captain Law! Why are you sleeping in the bath tub? Are you okay?"_

_"Wha-Capoferro-ya!"_

* * *

_"I'm ready for my punishment," _I lower my head at Law after he summoned me to his office. Inside, I'm cursing myself. Valerie, you deserve this shit. He's the one who was willing to share a bed with you to get you recovered from your sickness. And what did you do to pay him back? Left him in the bathroom, making him a total idiot, losing his pride as the captain for your own sake. I guess that laundry task for years will not be enough to set things up.

_"We have reached the new island." _

_"Uh huh." _I nod. _Is he going to abandon me on this island?_

_"It's more like a desert than an island," _he continues.

_"Uh huh." _I nod again. _Shit, this is for real. He's going to abandon me in a desert, where food is low in supply, and water is hard to find._

_"Will you get fever under hot weather?"_

_"Uh... huh?" _I blink, not certain with his question.

_"I'm asking you... Will you get fever under hot weather?"_ He emphasizes every word as if I'm deaf.

_"No."_

_"Good. Now get yourself prepared. We're going off to the desert soon." _Law turns his back on me, wading through the paperwork on his desk.

_"How about... my punishment?" _

_"Since you're fully recovered, five nights of patrol for you."_

_"Staying up for five nights... for patrol? Is that all?" _

_"Yes. Didn't I make my order clearly?"_

_"Yes. Thanks, captain."_

_"It's a punishment. Why should you be glad?"_

_"Oh, nothing."_

I need to consult to Law about my paranoid but... fine.

* * *

Law commands us to muster in one hour. He has already taken a detour on the island. There's some villages even in a hot desert like this. I can feel the hotness inside my room, hotter than what I have experienced from my fever. Day times in desert are hot like inferno, while nights in desert are cold like... North Blue? I have no idea. A robe is a must, sufficient water is important too. I check my tote bag, heave a sigh of relief at the sigh of my black robe. I used to wear it whenever I went for killings at night.

I conceal the revolver that master gave to me in my coat, wondering if I'll ever need it for I am a knight. Maybe it's time to take up some new skills. Pirates use guns to fight as well. I buckle on my swords, including Shiloh. That means... I have to spend extra water on him. Sigh. Law can bring his animal (Bepo) along, I shall bring mine too. Sadly, I haven't get him a saddle. A polar bear seems to be easier to rear. And you won't suffer aches after a long time riding on a bear on its back.

The sword I have stolen from the "Element" is left hanging on my wall. I guess I'll start collecting good swords from the Grand Line, just like my master. It'll be great to have a room that filled with swords. I thought of decorating my room with posters before. But it was not a good idea to start with Law's bounty poster. So the idea was out from my list. Everyone will take me as a _hentai._

As for the novel from master... I don't think I'll have time for leisure reading. So I leave it on my desk.

After putting on my black robe, it's almost the time. I grab up my bag and strap it on, walking out of my room, getting ready to venture the desert.


	29. Chapter 29

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Keep your fingers crossed! **

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: I believe he has at least three same hoodie xD**

**MelissaRM: Think of why Arabic women wear black all the time.**

**UNICORNSPOORAINOWS: The bet is certainly good for both of them, either way one of them gets that one million. All anime lovers have young heart, I'll never get fed up. Valerie, a wizard? She's just a knight xD **

**Chocolateluver4ever: Thanks for waiting patiently =)**

**xxdarkvampireangelxx: Since you say so, I'll try to make more of it. Thanks for your review!**

* * *

After leaving the sub, I take a glance around me. Law told us there were villages in this desert. What I conclude is: Law's a big fat liar. There's nothing laying in front of us except for the sand field stretches as far as the eyes can see. A gust of wind lifts a lock of my hair and whips it against my cheek. The heat is unbearable. I crave for a cool and shady place from the intense sunlight.

I glance over my shoulder. Bepo's lying half-dead on the sand. Pity him. Now he looks like a hibernated animal waking up in the wrong season. In fact, all of the Heart Pirates got to the wrong island. We came from the North Blue, which is a winter island that we enjoyed and used to it. On the contrary, this summer island will get us killed if we're not well-prepared. Feeling helpless to the degree of hotness as I were having fever earlier, I let myself lying on Bepo.

_"Get off me Valerie. I'm sweating all over my body." _Bepo grunts, with his tongue sticking on the ground. Gross.

_"Bah. Wait till I find another polar bear on this island."_

_"That would be impossible."_

_"So shut up and let me sleep on you forever."_

_"Noooo..." _Bepo trails off. Both of us remain silence for awhile. We don't want to waste that much of saliva on crapping.

_"Bepo! Capoferro-ya! Get up now, we're heading to Mizanekh now." _Law's voice cut into the air. His clothing and his _nodaichi_ are just as usual, except that he took off his hat and covered his head with the hood of his hoodie. No comment. He's always handsome and hot.

_"Mizanekh? There's not any sign of village here, and people too." _I protest. By the next minute, I hear footsteps coming, nearer and nearer. Instantly all of our heads jerk at the same direction from the sound, like puppets connected to the same string.

It's a small girl. Barely age ten, well-tanned. She wears white robe that makes her complexion looks even darker. Under the robe, reveals her big eyes, sharp nose and small, rosy lips. _"I have come to lead you guys to my village."_

* * *

We've been walking for five minutes but we don't catch any sight of shops nor houses. That girl introduced herself. Her name's Aru. She was the one who talked to Law and promised him to take us to her village called Mizanekh. A group of pirates, five members, following behind a small girl. I ought to laugh at myself for this. Bepo is walking beside me. He seems to be very interested of my tote bag and pleads me so he can take a look at it. I surrender over his cutesy eyes and toss my bag to him.

He searches...No, he sniffs my bag all over and gets disappointed because I have no food and drinks with me. Then, he grabs something which makes the sound of crumpling papers. I knit my eyebrows. I don't remember that I kept any papers with me. As Bepo lifts them out, my mouth is opening wide and I can feel my chin almost touches the ground.

What the hell it's Law's bounty posters!

I hurdle to Bepo and snatch them quickly, stuffing them back into my bag. Bepo pauses for a moment before smiling sinister at me. _"Captain Law, Valerie loves-"_

_"I would love to ride on Bepo!" _I hear my voice cuts across Bepo's as I whack Bepo's back and give him a pinch.

Law sighs. _"Bepo, carry her on your back then. I think she's still weak apart from her recovery."_

_"Aye aye captain." _Head down, Bepo replies to Law's order. I throw Bepo a smile, a sign of victory for spoiling his fun. He lowers his body so I can climb on it. Kekeke. That one million beri is still far from Bepo's reach. I'm evil. Just like a witch who spoils kids' fun and makes them crybabies. But Bepo's not a crybaby. He's a non-stop-complaining bear.

_"Grr... You collect captain's posters surreptitiously yet you denied that you love him." _Bepo whispers.

_"Idiot. I didn't collect them. My master played some kind of prank on me. He's childish and playful, like you."_

_"Then why didn't you throw those posters away?"_ Bepo asks.

To tell the truth, I can't even tell why I keep Law's posters instead of throwing them away. _"It's hard to find a dustbin these days."_

* * *

Aru leads us to an area that has over hundreds of bottles wrapped in towels placing tidily on the ground. She says that these are the bottles which contained cool water and we are welcomed to drink them. I doubt that the water would be cool. Placing water under the hot sun? I don't understand logic in desert. But I accept the water from Aru and drink it out of my thirst. Surprisingly, the water tastes cool.

_"We wrapped the bottles with wet towels. By placing the bottles under the sun, evaporation occurs. Hot air is lighter than the cool air. The water droplets on the wet towels will evaporate, bringing along the hot air to rise up. That leaves the cool water behind." _Aru explains with a smile. God gracious. I see why people do survive in desert. Having our doubt answered, Law asks Aru another question.

_"Where's your village then?"_

_"It's under your feet." _

Law raises his eyebrow. He stamps his feet on where he stands. It's not the sound produced when you walk on the sand. It's the sound produced when you walk on the wooden floor. Law bends down and sweeps away some sand. There's a wooden piece with a metal latch on it. Aru grips the latch and lifts the wooden piece upward, making an entrance to the underground.

* * *

_"Our country is a desert called Soromoc. It's a desert filled with dangerous species that we don't know what will strike us next, like giant scorpions and violent desert penguins. So, our ancestors built a city underground called Mizanekh, where you can find shops and houses everywhere. Miss Valerie, you can even find a blacksmith here to forge you a sword. There's plenty of medical supplies here too. By the way, the water you drank was collected from cacti."_

Aru's mom is right. An underground city in a desert. It feels cool inside here compares to outside, and I need no to wear the robe so I fold it in my bag. Fantastic. I'm spellbound to see a number of shops stretch in front of us, and I'm determined to see all of it. People everywhere. Even though Mizanekh has no sunlight passing through the ground but this place is like a cave lighten up with fire torches.

_"Cacti?" _Shachi and Penguin yell in disbelief.

_"Yes. Cacti absorb and save water inside their veins. We called them cacti juice. Don't worry, the water is safe and clean to be drunk. Or, do you prefer to drink sea water?"_

_"No, we're happy to drink cacti juice."_

_"How many days do it takes for the log pose to finish its recording here?" _Law finally speaks.

_"Quite long. It takes a week."_

_"Is it okay for us to go outside? To the desert?"_

_"I won't say no if you insist. But I have to warn you: Be careful."_

_"No worries, we're pirates. The only arch-enemy of pirates is marines." _Law smirks. Does he intend to hunt giant scorpions or some violent desert penguins? I doubt that, but no one knows the answer, of course.

* * *

**Hontouni sumimasen! Sorry for the late update, my parents dragged me to a trip with cousin's family and they banned us not to bring along laptop. After the trip, I went to a two-days comic fiesta for the first time. There were many Law's cosplayers but none of them brought out his character exactly. But One Piece's cosplayers were the best. They were the hits!**


	30. Chapter 30

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**boo: that will be a long way to go~**

**TheAkatsukisPet: It cracked my mind to think of a non-ordinary desert =)**

**MelissaRM: Behold those penguins in this chapter!**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: He eats too much of cucumbers, I guess xD**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Wondering what will Bepo do with that one million...**

* * *

The first day in Mizanekh is perfectly fine. Everyone's having good mood, including Law. Even though his expressions are always hard to be deciphered, that he wears a grin whatever he does, he looks pleasant as we saunter around the village after having a hearty meal. In the market he bargains with apothecaries and gets sufficient supply of medical instruments. Shachi and Penguin do Law's bidding without any grouch; they carry Law's bargain and hum songs that I do not recognize. As for Bepo... well, he'll be happy as long as he stays inside here, in the Mizanekh, to enjoy the cool surrounding more than the hot breeze beyond the world up there.

If they're happy, my happiness is the triple of theirs. First, we had broiled mushrooms with salt for lunch. It were so delicious that I realized I've never been a very religious person until I had them. I bow down to the mushrooms because there's no way humans made stuff that taste so good. Law asked about the recipe and the cook told us that the mushrooms are originated from the desert called desert mushrooms. It's quite hard to find them, I think you can even figure out the money Law had to pay for the meal. He didn't mind, since he got his remuneration which are a lot from Mr. Drenk.

Second, I found a veteran blacksmith. He helped to sharpen my sword and added embellishment on the hilt, for free. Law insisted to pay for me but the blacksmith refused to take our money. He said it was a long time ago he met a "lovely couple" like us, we did clarify our relationship, but the blacksmith waved us goodbye and shouted: _"Have a nice honeymoon!" _Duh. Do you ever go for a honeymoon in a desert? Much worse, he didn't take us as a normal couple, he took us as newly-wed couple. We didn't correct him coz' we knew he wouldn't listen.

Third, remember my punishment for I dumped Law in the bathroom? We're staying in this desert for the whole week 'till the log pose finishes its recording. That means, my shift for patrol is delayed to a week later. Woohoo! Law made the rest of the crew to keep an eye on our sub. They're not allowed to surface the sub unless Law makes his order through _den den mushi. _The sub is our main asset. It would be a catastrophe if it is destroyed or robbed by other pirates or marines. Come to think of it, I haven't meet other pirates' crew so far from the first day I joined Heart Pirates. I'm eager to have a fight with them, with a purpose to test my skills, whether they improved or not.

We stay in a hotel and I sleep a deep and dreamless sleep this night. Yes, dreamless. No Aurora, no Exile, no mother. And I'm glad to have a good sleep like this.

* * *

The next morning, I notice that people in Mizanekh seem to lose contact with the outside world. They don't read newspaper, they have no system to receive signals. Still, they live on a prosperous life. There is no problem for securing food supply here. They're knowledgeable to solve real life's problem, such as survival in desert.

_"No, you're wrong," _Aru protests after what I told her, _"we don't lose contact with the world outside. In fact, we're up to date with the flow. We don't read newspaper because the newspaper is sent weekly. We have goods transported from the other countries."_

_"Oh really?" _I poke her face, _"then why didn't I read any news about Soromoc and Mizanekh before? I mean, pirates come to Grand Line, some of them must have traveled through here before they sailed off to the next island, right?"_

_"Many pirates before you guys didn't get to experience Mizanekh." _

_"How so?" _I ask. They fail to notice this underground city?

_"Those pirates were different from you guys. Your captain was daring enough, and once he found me, he asked for my help to take you all to my village. Unlike the others, they were scared to venture out in a desert due to what happened to a summer island before. You know a country called Alabasta?"_

_"Yeah, I know. Almost half of the country was destroyed by the sand and experienced a lack of rain over a period. The former Shichibukai- Crocodile, was the mastermind behind it. Who helped the country gained back its prosperity it's still remained as a mystery." _I recall what I read back in the newspaper few months ago.

_"That's right. Most of the pirates often feel lost arriving at summer islands, especially a desert. They're lacked of surviving skills in desert, and hyped up easily by the climate. That's irony because desert's a place with the most sunlight and people tend to look at the dark side when they reach here. Then, do you know what they do after they reach here?"_

_"That... I don't know."_

_"They stayed on their ships. Not wanting to explore, not wanting to seek others' help. It takes a week for the Log Pose to complete the recording task. And before that, they were all dead due to dehydration." _Aru says, speaking slowly with an authentic account of life in the desert.

* * *

After such an auspicious beginning, Law is eager to take risk to venture out in the desert, leaving Bepo in Mizanekh. He's too scared for the weather outside.

_"You've gotta be kidding." _I furrow my brow at him.

_"No, Captain Law never kid about this thing." _Penguin defends Law. _"He likes to get into fights. That's how he earned his reputation, okay?"_

_"Fights? He wants to have fights with animals out there?" _I would love to fight, but not with animals. Maybe this is the chance I can watch Shachi and Penguin's fight.

_"Alright, we'll divide into two groups." _Law ignores my questions, raising his hand to cover the lower half of his face. He is always something of a maverick. _"Shachi, you come with me. Penguin, I leave Capoferro-ya to you."_

Penguin screams and dances; Shachi pretends to draw circles with his finger at the corner in desperate. _"No, I don't want to. I'm with Bepo!"_

_"Bepo's not coming." _Law crosses his arms and looks down at me.

_"But..." _I trail off. I'm at a loss for words. Bepo is Law's first mate. Well, that pretty much same goes to me. Among the Heart Pirates' crew, I met him the first. And this time he can't follow us, that's quite disappointing to both Law and I.

Law groans. _"Okay. I let you choose. Either you team up with Penguin or you team up with me."_

I give him a smile. Normally I avoid being close to him, but not today. Bepo's not here, no one's gonna tease me or try hard to find the evidence that I might fall for Law. _"I'll go with you."_

Shachi and Penguin hug each other and cry together. Oops.

* * *

No human being can cross this waste of burning sand because they never tried. The desert is so violent, sometimes, is the burning wind that the scorching heat dries up our mouths. We have not encountered any storm yet. Storms of wind are often more terrible on the desert than on the ocean. The situation of such is dreadful. This is how the value of a cup of water really felt. No wonder no other pirates are seen.

Fortunately, Aru taught me all the survival skills on desert she knows. She said that we can always find an underground shelter by luck that they have more than fifty entrances with paths that will lead us to the Mizanekh. I thanked her and promised to find desert mushrooms for her.

The four of us are still together. We will only split if anything happens, like if we can't handle a fight, someone has to be left behind to defend and save some time for the rest to escape. This kind of thing often happens on a desert.

_"Are we there yet?" _I pull the robe closer to myself, asking Law who's studying the map. Law, Shachi and Penguin borrowed robes from the villagers. Same like mine, they are all black robes.

_"Almost." _Law folds the map and slips it inside his robe. He looks good in black.

* * *

Violent desert penguins are not very violent as I expected. In fact, they're all adorable. Each of them holds one broom in their hands, wandering around their clan individually.

_"Penguin, they're your family. You should be the one to take down the guards first to approach their boss." _I laugh. Penguin makes a face.

Law adjusts his robe. _"No, Capoferro-ya. You're the knight and it's your responsibility to lure them."_

_"I can't. They're so cute." _These penguins' squeaking is indeed cute, let alone the way they walk.

_"You have to do it. We'll back up you then." _Law angles his head lightly, to gesture me to act fast. _"There's no way you can't follow your captain's order."_

_"Control freak." _I draw my sword out and prance toward the penguins' clan. I swing my sword and that cuts the first penguin's broom into half. It squeaks loudly, grabbing the attention of other penguins. Without its broom, the penguin attacks me with its bare hands. That doesn't hurt much. I pull my sword and slash across its neck. One down.

Soon, I'm marooned by at least ten desert penguins. All of them fight in the same style: Holds the broom, raises the broom in the air with two hands, tumbles forward to the ground, making the broom hit their targets and climbs up. This makes them weak defenders. I get them all clear in no time. Shachi and Penguin clap their hands for my achievement. A pang of guilty strikes me for I killed these cutey animals. Law just shows his usual grin.

Then, I feel the ground beneath me shakes. _Earthquake on a desert? _No. A large animal plunges out from the ground, sending sand flying everywhere. I wipe my eyes to get rid of the sand. That's when I get a clear sight of the animal.

The giant scorpion of the Desert of Soromoc, Minos Emp.


	31. Chapter 31

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**asdfghjk: asdfjkl;jsiwfnwiee aaimxnzdej *keyboard smash all the way***

**TheAkatsukisPet: and poor Penguin too xD**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: especially the black coat he wears after two years kyahh~~**

**Girl-luvs-manga: not without Law. *if you know what I mean***

**robin3zoro: thanks, glad you love it =)**

* * *

Eight legs. A pair of grasping claws. A segmented body that ends with a narrow, segmented tail, which is carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back, ending with a venomous stinger that is capable of killing human beings. That's right, a scorpion, but an enormously large one.

Shachi and Penguin scream in terror. Well, even an idiot can guess that martial art will do no harm to this huge creature. Two claws, eight legs and one sting. Interesting opponent._ Minos Emp_, huh? Seems like it has some sort of relationship with those violent desert penguins. I recall the squeaking of the first penguin, which was abnormally loud and weird. _Naruhodo. _It squeaked, ostensibly to call for help from its mate. And the actual thing was it called for the other's help. Maybe those penguins are responsible to feed Minos Emp.

_"Shachi, Penguin, run and seek for shelter! Capoferro-ya! You take down its claws!" _

_"Ay, captain!"_

I sprint to my right side, and Law heads to the left side in order to get to Minos Emp's body. Now that I'm right in front of it, drawing its attention from Law to me. It sends it claws fast, one by one, as I dodge every attack swiftly. This aggressive enemy will not go easy on me. If you let your guard down, you could be killed in any time, even it's just a split second. And no one will come to your rescue, for this is a deserted desert. I grip my sword firmer, dodging another claw-attack as I leap from the ground. Aiming at the lower part of right claw, I raise my sword and slash it, deep enough to cut it away from its body.

I see Law's doing a good job. He uses Room and disintegrate the sting of Minos Emp with his _nodaichi. _Now that I have no worries for its venom to reach for me and send me to death. I envy Law for he's good either in long-range fight or close-range fight. I want to see what happens next but I haven't take down another claw, which is the left one. Struggling before its death, Minos Emp thrust the only claw left at me. Instead of dodging, I stab my sword into the ground. _"Split!" _Dozens of swords which resemble mine with the similarity of hundred percent begin to form around Minos Emp. _"Deform!" _All of the them plunge into the sand with great forces, and the sand ground beneath Minos Emp undergoes deformation, burying its giant body right after its claw does a scratch over my robe and cuts off few strands of my hair. _"Compound!" _As I shout out the last word, the rest of the swords form into one piece with my sword, leaving no one left.

_"Wow." _Law exclaims in a low voice as he gives a shove to his _nodaichi _to sheathe it into the sheath_. __"You make me wonder who your master is."_

_"That, I know nothing better than you. This may sounds strange to you, but my master never revealed who the hell he was to me and other knights in the academic." _I buckle up my sword, _"I don't even know his name."_

_"Yes, for someone who encouraged his student to become a pirate, I wouldn't say he's sane."_ Law watches me for a moment before he continues. _"How did you do that?"_

_"Did what?" _I ask.

_"Your sword. It splits."_

_"Oh, that. My sword is named 'Split', I guess you know the rest of the story." _I hate explaining things. There're always long story.

_"I still don't get it."_

_"Well, my sword can split, but they're not illusions. They're real. After I made it split, I imbued Busoshoku Haki on every each of them. That created the great force to deform the sand. Get it?"_

_"What's the name of the second sword?"_

_"Shiloh." _I answer as matter of fact.

_"Shiloh?"_

_"Yes. Shiloh."_

He moves on. "I_ never knew I had recruited such powerful knight. I can use Haki too. Are you really Capoferro Valerie?"_

_"Jesus. You did recognize me when you first saw me. And now you're confused."_

_"Because your eyes are small and sharp. It doesn't make any change since you were small. How did you recognize me then?"_

_"I didn't recognize you. I knew it was you. Your bounty posters were everywhere, with the name of Trafalgar Law. Duh."_

* * *

The night arrives quietly. Under the clear sky without clouds, the temperature drops drastically. I wrap the robe even tighter to myself, walking beside Law. We have no idea where Shachi and Penguin went for shelter. They can be everywhere on this desert.

_"Sha... Shall we fu...fu...find a shell... shelter too?" _I ask with my gritted teeth.

_"I have tested many surfaces but none of them gave the sound of wooden block." _Law sighs. _"You cold? Come here."_

Law takes off his robe and puts it on me. _"How about you?"_

_"Never mind. I can take the cold. What's with you? We're originated from North Blue and you were the one who would be the most active in the snow."_

_"There's no any snow here." _

_"Nonsense." _

I secretly thank him for the robe inside my heart.

* * *

We manage to find a shelter after few minutes, and it's not ordinary shelter that leads us to Mizanekh. It's lighten with oil lamps, with an old man inside.

_"This shelter leads to Rahas, not Mizanekh." _The old man informs.

_"What? Rahas?" _

_"You guys seem to walk too far from Mizanekh. I don't mind to put you two up for one night." _The old man turns his back on us and starts to read newspaper under one of the oil lamps in the corner. _"Make yourselves at home. There's leftover on the table."_

_"Thanks." _Law urges me to the table and forces me to eat. There's only a plate filled with unidentified meat and some veggie.

_"I'm not hungry."_ I lie because I want him to eat first.

_"Are you on a diet?"_

_"Of course not."_

_"Then eat it."_

I eat everything half, the meat, the veggie. I push the plate to him. _"You finish the halves."_

_"I don't consume others' saliva." _He snickers. _"You finish it all."_

* * *

The old man spreads two brown mat on the floor. _"You guys sleep on the mats. I'll be the guard up all night." _He walks out of the shelter, not letting us have the chance to continue on the conversation. Out of tiredness, I get into the mat and cover myself with my robe. Law folds his robe a few times, then puts it on the mat and lays on it as a pillow.

As I recall, this is the second time we sleep together. The last time... Urgh. It'll never get off my mind no matter how hard I try.

_"Captain Law." _I whisper.

_"I get it." _He makes all the oil lamps in the shelter go off. _"You can't sleep with the lights on, right?"_

_"Hehehe. Thanks. How about some lighthearted talk before we sleep?"_

_"According to a research, you'll get insomnia if you talk before you sleep." _He replies coldly.

_"Fine, fine." _I pull my robe up to cover the entire body of mine.

_"But I'm willing to tell you a bedtime story." _Law suggests. I nod my head twice, just like I would whenever my mom asked if she should read me bedtime stories until I fell asleep. _"This story is called: Goodnight, My Star."_

Once upon a time, a lion, which is the King of the Jungle, musters all the animals in  
the woods altogether for a meeting. He announces that he's going to do a kind act  
for he's going to distribute the stars in the sky for everyone. All the animals cheer  
and praise for their king's generosity. The lion says that should be an order. So, the  
lion is the first to choose his own star, following by the tiger, the bear, the leopard,  
and also the wolf, the fox, and... the dear. Just as the lion stares at the sky, thinking  
of which star should he choose, a small, trembling voice cuts across everyone's mind.  
_"Excuse me, when will be my turn to choose?"_  
It's a small, petite rat, that is easily overlooked by anyone. Although he's just a small  
thing that contribute nothing to the woods, he wants to have his own star, just like  
everyone else. The lion gives the little rat a gloating remark.  
_"You? You're the last one, of course. The only star left that nobody wants will be yours."_  
The lion laughs, and without hesitation, he chooses the largest and brightest star.  
Then, the tiger picks the star which shines the second brightest, the bear picks the  
third, the leopard picks the fourth... The little rat waits patiently. Finally, it's his turn.  
The only star left is the smallest star which glows the dimmest, not to mention it's a  
star which hangs on the closest verge on the sky that no one would notice its  
existence. The little rat recognizes the star, and says hello to the star.  
_"Hello, I'm Little Rat. You're my star from now on."  
_The lion makes everyone promises that they can only look at their own star, and forbids  
everyone to look at others' stars. All animals accept the rule. And so, the little rat has a  
star as one of its belongings. He's a good one, he follows the rule obediently, only looking  
at his star. He does not peak at others' star. To tell the truth, the little rat doesn't mind  
that much of others' stars, owing to the fact that he becomes fonder and fonder to his  
star. After finishing his dinner, the little rat will stay beside the window to catch a glimpse  
of the star, very concentrating, just like listening to wonderful music. He can't think of any-  
thing else that is happier than looking at his star. Every night, before the little rat gets to  
sleep, he will greet his star goodnight. Days pass by, the little rat's star begins to glow  
brighter and brighter. He even has a thought of eating potato chips as celebration. Unfor-  
tunately, on one night, the little rat finds his star twinkles more than ever. It flickers  
vigorously, and that tantalizes the little rat. He searches for the lion, but the lion tells him  
to forget about his old star that he will grant him all the stars in the sky. The little rat declines  
his offer, and he continues to look after his star by the window. Suddenly, the star  
glows darker and darker, and turns into a shooting star, flying across the star like  
a white line across the blackboard with a chalk, and it drops down to the earth in front of  
the little rat's house. The little rat clutches the stone and cries for the death of his star.  
He tries everything to make the star shines. He bathes the stone, he wipes the stone  
with the cleanest cloth, but all of his hard job are fruitless attempt. The star does not come  
back to life. The next morning, the little rat places the stone under the sun, letting it  
absorb the sunlight. Nothing happens. At the same night, the little rat places the stone  
under the moonlight. Also, nothing happens. The little rat decides to make the ground  
in front his house the crematorium of the stone. He burns the stone with a torch.  
Miraculously, the stone starts to shine like a star. It leaps and bounds back to the sky,  
back to its original position. Now, the star is no longer the smallest and the dullest one.  
It becomes the brightest and the most attractive among the stars.  
_"My star has become the brightest star. Will the King of the Jungle claim it back from me?"  
_But the little rat feels tired and exhausted, with satisfaction, of course.  
_"Goodnight, my star."_

_"Are you asleep, Capoferro-ya?"_

_"Nice story you got." _I let out a yawn.

_"Goodnight, Capoferro-ya."_

I turn my back to Law, wiping the tears away and sleep. _"Goodnight, my captain."_


	32. Chapter 32

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**g: You mean the "Goodnight,my star"?**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: but em... things don't go swiftly in this chapter. You had the 100th review, thanks for your support all the way long. You should change your name to "100th Squad 3rd Seat", just kiddin' =p**

**Nixie nightbird: Thanks for your review, here's the new chapter~**

**Girl-luvs-manga: bedtime stories are good, but they're pretty boring if you retell the same stories. and i thought that was a good one =)**

**Death-Law: yeah, it's a fact that i read somewhere else. I tried it with my sis before and... well, you know xD**

* * *

_"What on earth are you thinking? You think you're so great that you can roam freely on this desert? Arrogant brat! Minos Emp is the most dangerous creature on this desert. Even if you're truly strong, can't you think of the troubles that will bring to that girl? My god, why do pirates doesn't consider things wisely nowadays. Listen up, kiddo. You have to stay here for two days. I will go on and check around, be sure to take care of your girlfriend. You can't afford to give anyone cause to search for you two." _The old man's voice starts to raise after Law tells him about our decision to go back to Mizanekh.

_"I'm not his girlfriend." _I protest as Law saying out the same time: _"She's not my girlfriend."_

Law crosses his arms in front of his chestand forms some short creases near his mouth that are faintly reminiscent of a smile. _"Minos Emp? That giant scorpion? Don't worry about that. We have already taken care of that before we reached here. And, Capoferro-ya was the one who buried it."_

The old man shakes his head in disbelief. _"What?"_

_"Now please let us get out of here like a good girl should. Or you prefer your death to be like Minos Emp?"_

_"Hold, hold on! Do-do not kill me!"_

_"Captain, I know you're pissed. At least you should respect the elders."_ I'm not fond of killing old people, especially an octogenarian that provided us shelter.

_"Respect the elders? Capoferro-ya, he's blocking our way out. We have to return to Mizanekh. I don't think you want to stay over in Rahas."_

_"Rahas's not bad either. I can tolerate as long as there's hotels."_

_"Whatever you say. But I'm going back to Mizanekh." _He hisses through his teeth.

I squeeze my eyes and make a face at him. He's smart, so he knows what it means. A heavy silence follows, in the midst of which the old man speaks up.

_"Okay, you have defeated Minos Emp. Good, I assure you guys are strong. But the marines are taking action now, to catch you." _The old man points his index finger at me. I stare at him in numb, not knowing what is he talking about.

The old man withdraws a newspaper from his robe, and hands it to Law. _"Marines? Capoferro-ya, what have you done before you come to Grand Line?" _Law turns his head and asks skeptically, receiving the newspaper from him.

_"I don't think I did anything." _Killing fifty marines was certainly nothing biggie for a pirate.

For the headline, there's a report of the aftermath of a fight inflicted by a pirate named Basil Hawkins, the captain of the Hawkins Pirates. Law flips the newspaper and sees my photo on page 13.

Oh shit. My father's the one who ordered the marines to locate me, after his return to North Blue and heard that I have seemingly vanished into thin air. He said that I must be sent back within three months. After three months, it'll be my wedding with... Saint Charloss? What the hell! My dad and Saint Roswald were the ones who arranged this marriage. Saint Roswald demanded my dad to be his private doctor for the rest of his life and approved my dad to live in the Holy Land of Mariejois. My dad wanted to bring me along (maybe it's because he tends to sell off our mansion and he thought that I have no place to live), but I'm not privileged. So they arranged our wedding, and so I can stay in Mariejois as Saint Charloss's wife.

Sengoku promised that he'll leave no stone unturns until they find me. But so far they have come up empty-handed. I see Coby and Helmeppo's interview. They reported that they were ordered to send me to Trafalgar Law so I can accomplish my task to kill him. And there were rumors saying that I failed to proceed my murderer and Trafalgar Law had his control over me, forcing me to join his crew and become one of his subordinates. Aurora's my best friend, she's in the interview too. She said she couldn't recognize me for I have turned into a monster who dared to stab her best friend. Okay, Aurora's helping me. Nice act she got. But I don't like the phrase _"No matter what's her decision, I'll support her for her own happiness, even if she chooses to be with some filthy pirates." _It's somehow seemed obvious that she's the one who hided everything from the World Government. And, Law's not a filthy pirate.

Law gives me a half-grin-half-stare expression. _"Capoferro-ya, nice job you did out there to cause your captain a serious headache."_

_"But I-"_

_"Stop. I don't want to hear anything. Are you following me to go back to Mizanekh or not?"_

* * *

There are virtually no other people on this desert, except for Law and I. The clear blue sky darkens overhead, though there's not a single cloud. It's going to rain soon. I don't like raining, but it seems good to have rain for a walk in the desert. The wind begins to shift again. Its force becomes strong, picking up until my hair streams straight out to the left. I look at Law, who's walking in front of me, with a wide gap between us. His robe flaps against him along the flow of the wind.

_"Captain?" _I say timidly.

_"Yeah?"_

_"I'm sorry I didn't know that my dad-"_

_"No, don't apologize." _He says without turning his head.

_"So... you're not going to send me back to my dad?"_

_"No." _He answers shortly.

_"Thanks." _I say, heaving a sigh of relief.

_"This may be hard for you Capoferro-ya... But I have to hide you for a long time." _Law says coldly.

_"Hide... me?"_

_"I'm not going to say that you're one of the Heart Pirates. And you're going to shut your mouth up. That's the best way I came up with."_

_"You mean... I have to be enclosed with the world outside and stay in our sub?"_

_"Yes."  
_

_"There's no way I can do that." _I'm proud to be his subordinate, proud to be one of the Heart Pirates. Why is he doing this?

_"I can force you to do that. You're not a member of the Heart Pirates, is that hard to admit? You know nothing about medical, martial arts and mechanical. But other members do."_

_"I know Kendo and Karate." _I protest.

_"But they're only for self-defense, right? You can't use them in the battle."_

_"Of course I don't use them in the battle. I'm a knight-"_

Law cuts off before I can finish my sentence. "Yes,_ you're a knight. What would you be without any sword?" _

_"What?"_

_"Without sword, you're nothing. You're just a brat who needs a bedtime story before you sleep."_

I feel the blood rush to my face, the sudden stab of tears at the back of my eyes. How could he possibly says that? He knows that my mom's a damn important person to me and what she did, I appreciated them. Law insults me with it, and I have to hold myself not to cry.

_"So what? In that case, you're just a filthy pirate with no position in the society! A shitty brat, who thought he could become a noble by killing his own-" _I blurt out.

Law dashes to me so hard that both of us fall down on the sand. _"I warn you, don't ever bring out that subject again." _His piercing eyes send his anger out, but I stare him back fiercely under him. I push him off me. At the same time, it starts to rain. A single bolt of jagged lightning spears down from the cloudless sky. Anger swallows me, a thick fog.

_"Fuck you." _In the end, these are the two words that come.

* * *

**Happy new year everyone~**


	33. Chapter 33

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**Girl-luvs-manga: What to do? Law's a control freak, after all**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: You got me again. Thanks for waiting patiently.**

**asdfghjk: I don't know what to say but... A. RI. GA. TOU. GO. ZAI. MA. SU!**

* * *

_"A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more..."_

_"Okay, quit the general descriptions. I want to learn to drive this sub."_ I whirl around, gesturing the whole sub.

Law has shut me down in the boiler room with the rest of the crew mates for nearly one month. There's a lot of chores to do here and I'm pretty fed up with that. I train myself with my fencing skill. I have finished reading _The __Templars: The Dramatic History of the Knights Templar, the Most Powerful Military Order of the Crusades,_ which is a gift from master. I chat with everyone here. But that's not gonna help. I'm forbid to leave the boiler room, let alone to go out of the sub. I have no rights to follow Law to explore the islands.

Light does not penetrate very far into the ocean, and the boiler room has low lightening system, I spend my daily life in paltry brightness with eight men who wear the same boiler-suit. This is ridiculous. Does Law think that he can hide me until the day of my wedding with that fat-ass, spoiled brat? I don't think so. Every now and then I will shudder at the memory of the chaos that followed Saint Charloss's arrival.

What the hell is Law thinking? The marines will probably send their crew to us. Or even _Shichibukai, _for worse. _Shichibukai? _That's right! Boa Hancock is my "sister". She did say that she'll lend me a hand. She lives in... Amazon Lily?

But no. I can't have her getting involved in my predicament. The World Noble has everything. She'll have a fit if she knows I'm getting married with a World Noble.

_"But Valerie, this is not something you..." _A guy called Dexter tries to convince me to give up.

I cut him off. _"He said that I know nothing you guys do. Teach me, then. Show me what should I do to become one of you."_

Jesse shakes his head and sighs. _"Valerie, I know Captain Law has been hard on you. That's for your own good, from what I see."_

_"Shut it, Jessica."_

_"It's Jesse."_

_"Alright, alright. Don't fight, kay? Guys? Valerie, I can teach you anything you want to know." _Armand looks up from his dusting and smiles.

* * *

_"To keep the submarine level at any set depth, the submarine must maintain a balance of air and water in the trim tanks. See that controller? You have to push it to open the trim tanks to let the sea water flows in. How deep is your cruising depth?" _Armand is pretty good with his skills.

_"500m." _Bepo, Shachi and Penguin are in their rooms. Law is wading through his document in his office. Jesse has checked them all and no one is left on the deck. That means I can start off anytime.

_"A sufficient supply of oxygen is very important. Oxygen is supplied from the oxygen generator. This line indicates the percentage of the oxygen in the sub. Make sure it does not drop below forty percent."_

_"Got it."_

_"Now it's the test to see how fast you can go... to avoid all the obstacles under the sea. Pull up the handbrake and go!"_

I press the "Start" button and speed off. I hold myself to the steering as Armand falls and falters to get up from the floor. I can hear other guys outside the cockpit yelling for help. Better not send for Law. He'll kill me if he finds out an amateur is driving his sub. Armand holds himself to a pole beside my seat. He instructs me to slow down the speed. I do whatever he says. He challenges me to go through the fish swarms. I tap the click to increase the gear, and I avoid all the fish swiftly. What lies behind the fish swarms is a whale. The alarm begins to signal of the obstacle in front of us. Shit. Law is going to know about this shit.

_"Change direction! We're gonna crush on it!" _Armand screams.

_"If I'm gonna wed, this is the last thing I want to do." _I say softly.

_"What?"_

_"To kill myself."_

_"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO. YOU'RE GONNA KILL ALL OF US!"_

I turn the steering just in time. Good. The whale does not sense the sub and tails off, creating bubbles all over the sub. I look over my shoulder. Armand is about half-death, like someone mimicking a corpse.

_"Did I pass the test?"_ I stand up from the seat.

_"Well... you did."_

Suddenly, the cockpit's door slammed opens. Standing there is not the others but Law, with his eyes staring intensely at us. I have already prepared for this so I fix my gaze on him. I'll not allow him to put the blame on Armand. Before we open our mouths, the metal cockpit begins to chatter. As the time ticks off, the sub shakes more vigorously that I fall down on Armand and Law stammers to sit down. Is there any earthquake underneath us? No, I don't think it's an earthquake. We're still far from the volcanic area.

Law's chin dips in a magnanimous tilt. _"Damn. Not this time."_

A large spotlight is shone through the dashboard of the sub. I can barely open my eyes to see what's going on, but I can feel the strong current that brings the whole sub into the light, just like the pieces of a broken ship being absorbed into the whirlpool after the wreckage.

* * *

I do not see Law after I open my eyes. Armand orders me not to make any sound. It seems that he does know where Law is. Through the dashboard, I can see our sub is floating on a big pool. I make a inference that this pool is connected with the sea water. Beside the pool, there's Law being tied to a wooden chair. His face is feigning indifference to whatever the guy sits in front of him talks about.

I narrow my eyes to get a clearer idea of who that guy is. He's wearing a large pink feathered coat and a pair of sunglasses with red shades. He looks familiar, but I have no slightest idea of his identity. Armand has no intention to tell me what he knows about. So I rush out to the deck before he can catch me up.

Bepo, Shachi and Penguin are hiding behind the wall on the deck. They're all looking very nervous while they explain that Law will sort things out, and I should go back inside the boiler room. This is crazy. Being tied to a wooden chair doesn't help to sort things out.

_"Fuffuffuffu... You better follow my advice, little bro. Don't you know the way I toy around with my cute prey?" _

Little bro? This is out of my expectation. Wow. Law has an _onni-san. _That would explain the situation. It's perfectly normal for a big brother to bully his small brother. Ha. Ha. Ha.

_"No matter what you say, I won't hand her out to you. You're a sick, perverted son of a bitch." _Law spits out a mouthful of saliva on the floor.

_"Then, I'll go into your sub and play the hunter game with her. I, of course, the hunter. She, the rabbit fufffuffuffu..."_

_"We have a deal, Doflamingo!" _Law says through his gritted teeth.

I cover my mouth with my left hand. I realize that the girl they're talking about is me. The marines have given up to search for me and now they send _Shichibukai _for me? No, this can't be true. No matter how strong I am, I could only be his prey instead of his opponent.

Donquixote Doflamingo. The second _Shichibukai _I have met after Boa Hancock.


	34. Chapter 34

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: And in this chapter is another f***ing disaster!**

**asdfghjk: don't worry, i have holidays these few days.**

**xXMunchkinXx: thank u, hope u enjoy this chapter xD**

**Girl-luvs-manga: and more dark secrets to be revealed... **

* * *

By the time Doflamingo has finished his hunter game through the submarine, he should have probably found out that his rabbit has gone- vanished down one of the white hallways and whisked behind one of the dozens of identical white door, along with three "bodyguards".

_"Are you sure this is the right way, Bepo?" _I say breathlessly, catching up behind Bepo. The scene of Law being interrogated by that damn _Shichibukai _is working its way into my head again, making me feel dizzy, and I try to calm myself by imagining the ocean outside.

_"Trust us, we have been here for like... almost twice..." _Shachi turns and gives me a quick smile. But I can tell he is nervous.

_"Wow, that's... unconvincing. You've been here for twice only. We could have got the wrong path, you know." _I stop as Bepo does, to check if there's any Doflamingo's subordinates around us. A _Shichibukai _like him should have a large amount of army with him, I suppose.

_"All clear. Follow me." _Bepo gestures down one of the hallways, which leads us to a blue door. Oh great, now we're getting further and further from Law. I take a deep breath and step through the door. Aren't they worry what's gonna happen to Law? I swallow past a suddenly dry throat, clutching tightly to the hilt of my sword.

We set off once more along the hall, Bepo's pace so brisk I have to almost trot along behind him to keep up. The feeling of deja vu is overwhelming. It's like the first time I met Bepo. We were running from the marines. And now we're escaping from Doflamingo's claws. Duh.

_"Is Law going to be okay?" _I ask, and they come to a halt at once.

_"Valerie, you shall have no worries about our captain. In case you haven't notice, Captain Law formed alliance with Doflamingo long time before you joined us. Doflamingo was the one who requested it; he was amazed by our captain's strength."_ Shachi answers.

_"And why did Captain Law accept it?"_

_"It's because captain thought that he could use a Shichibukai to... And now that the Shichibukai's using him back, to capture you. Hey Valerie, what happened? Why was Captain Law force to shut you down in the boiler room? And why would a Shichibukai come after you?"_

So Law did plan to take advantage over a _Shichibukai. _But why? Sensing that Shachi is hiding something from me, I clamp my mouth shut. I don't want to shock them by informing them that I'm a noble, who's gonna marry a fugly World Noble who has more wives than normal man does. And... that damn brat who made Law... killed his own parents.

* * *

_"Here it is. The exit." _

Bepo states that the exit will bring us out to the sea. He wants me to escape by swimming out of this ship, leave behind the Heart Pirates. It turns out that we have a serious argument over it.

_"Valerie, just go! We'll take care of everything. Captain said that the most important thing right now is your life!"_

_"I don't care. He did not command that right after me. You get it? You're not my captain so shut it. I want to go with you guys to help Captain Law."_

_"No, you don't know how powerful that Doflamingo guy is. Get out of here, please! Captain will kill us if he finds out that we don't follow his plan exactly."_

_"No, he can't do that. He didn't tell me a thing about his plan. I'm going back," _I push Bepo with all my might but he won't budge.

_"Valerie, stop being stubborn..."_

_"Damn it, get out of my way."_

My thighs are shaking. Law could be in danger, and I know he's in a half-conscious pile. I remember how Doflamingo sent a fast knee strike to Law's abdomen after Law rejected to hand out me to Doflamingo before we escaped. I'm not afraid. I'm never afraid since Law has given me a new guide of my life, which is to assist him. That's how I remain alive after my mother's death, how I came to become a knight and not some shitty noblewoman. But I feel the abstract terror of a world without him, without the possibility of Law, and I don't want to live there.

I hear a noise. Oh no. Someone's coming. Bepo groans out loud for my uncooperative and now, we're doomed. Is it Doflamingo? No, I think he'll let out the "Ffufffufffufffufu" laughter if he catches his prey.

_"Who's there? Show yourself!" _I dare myself to yell out.

Walking out of the silhouette, is a tall man with short dark hair, who wears a pair of sunglasses. This pirates' crew is crazy. Everyone seems to wear sunglasses here, is it? This man also has some lettuce leaves stick to his cheek, revealing that he just had his meal.

_"Who are you?" _

_"The man who has come to bring you to Joker." _He replies.

Joker? Does he mean Doflamingo? Well, I can't argue with that. For somebody who wears some kind of weird costumes is a joker himself.

_"I need to see Law." _

_"I'll bring you to them."_

_"Is he dead?"_

_"No. Unless you refuse to come with me."_

_"Okay. I'll go with you."_

_"Valerie!" _The trios yell behind me.

_"Don't worry, I'll be fine." _I assure them by forcing out a smile.

* * *

_"Your name's Capoferro Valerie?"_

Why is this tall guy starting to ask questions about me?

_"Yeah."_

_"Heard that name before."_

_"You should be. I was in the newspaper."_

_"No, I mean your family name. I met a knight with that name before."_

_"And his name is?"_

_"It was a she. Her name is Capoferro Harriet. Somehow, you resemble her a lot, especially your eyes."_

_"What? I know nothing about her. She could be my long-distance relative. My cousin brother does have eyes like this." _In fact, the members of Capoferro family have small, sharp eyes.

_"..._"

_"So what's your name?"_

_"Vergo."_

_"Virgo? That's weird."_

_"Not the horoscope."_

Virgo? What else other than Virgo?


	35. Chapter 35

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**asdfghjk: Thx for your review =)**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: and Law's the damn brat**

* * *

We stride down the hallways together, walking next to each other. Darn it. Why he has to be so tall? I'm pretty confident about my height, but being 10cm shorter than Law crushes it. And here's another guy who makes me look petite. Virgo (Vergo) takes another few turns and leads me to a dark stairwell, which I didn't pass through when I ran off earlier. I have a terrible feeling about this.

"_I don't remember I used a stairway to escape with them just now, Virgo." _I say without looking at him.

"_It's a shortcut. And please, have some respect for me. Call me Vergo-san," _ he says, not bothering to look at me too.

"_Why should I?"_

"_Tcch. You're as rude as your captain." _He continues to walk on. I follow silently.

For some reason, my sixth sense tells me the trios are following me, staying with my each and every step carefully. Not carefully enough for me to sense that. I should stop them from what are they doing but what does it matter? Law's their captain too. I feel a pang of guilty for leaving them behind a few moments before, but my more urgent feeling is the need to catch up to Law and... what? I have no idea. Make him feel better? Make myself feel better? Tell him I rather be his subordinate who's loyal and takes care of every order of his, and the fact that I have just been refused to listen to Bepo was an irrelavant coincidence? That will be a complete lie, yet also true at the same time.

A white door appears in our way. It's the door the trios and I used to escape. We walk through the door and what welcomes us, it's the same large space with ceiling soars twenty feet above us, and the floor under our feet is highly polished tiling. Doflamingo is rich, judging from the way he had his ship decorated.

I blink in the light and tilt my head straight. There, standing before Virgo and I, is that goddamned _Shichibukai _who hurt Law. My pupils speed to the corner of my eyes and I find Law being tied to the chair, looking half-dead. Law has a dark complexion but I see him like a patient who has skin so pale which reminds me of my mom. His face is covered with a sheen of sweat, and there's a spot of blood beneath his right nostril.

_"Doflamingo." _I spill out the name like cursing out a dirty word.

Doflamingo smiles hungrily. He raises his right hand up, gesturing Virgo to stay aside of our "business". Law flicks his head up and he's in a shock to find my presence in the same room with him, standing in front of Doflamingo, face-to-face.

_"Capoferro-ya! Why do you come back? I command them to help you escape!" _Law bellows at me.

_"No, Law. My dad's after me. The marines' too, not to mention this __Shichibukai. Don't worry, I'll have you continue on your journey to find One Piece. You shouldn't be sacrificed here. I'm not going to escape. Not without my captain."_

_"Quit it. You don't belong to Heart Pirates. You're not one of us."_

_"Then you're not my captain. So stop ordering me around."_

_"That's my catchphrase," _he snickers.

_"Wow, wow, both of you, calm down!" _Doflamingo's voice comes blasting through our dawdles to Law and messes Law's hair by pressing the hat on it. _"I was thinking about the reason for you haven't visit me for a long time. And you gave me this: You're in love with this girl?"_

Law forces a small laugh. _"What makes you think that we're lovers?"_

_"You're so dead," _I hiss at Doflamingo, ignoring the stupid question he asked Law. Somehow it doesn't seem necessary to point out that we're not lovers. _"I'm going to kill you."_

_"Nope, not today girl. I've got to send you to the Holy Land of Mariejois. I'll let go of this brat if you come with me."_

_ "Fuck, Capoferro-ya! Just go!" _Law's eyebrows twitch together.

_"Doflamingo, I'll have a deal with you."_

_"Pleasure to hear."_

_"Let's have a fight. If I win, you let all the Heart Pirates and me go. If I lose, well... I'm yours."_

_"Capoferro-ya, you'll never gonna win." _Law's voice cuts in again. I hold back the urge to look at him. If I do, I'll change my mind.

_"Ffufufufufu... Interesting... Deal."_

* * *

Fighting a _Shichibukai _is totally out of option. My major mission is to get the whole crew out of here. My adrenaline level notches up. My body is on full alert, but my mind has entered another state, wondering numbly for the blur image of master.

_Valerie, that skill I had taught you... Promise me, use it only if fighting is totally out of option._

Urgh. I don't want to use that skill. Granted, Law's doing nothing but sitting there with his hands tied. Granted, no one's gonna fight him except for me. Granted, he's a one hell _Shichibukai. _It gives me no choice but to use it. Doflamingo studies my face thoughtfully.

_"I don't want to push you fufufufufu... This deal can be cancelled anytime you want."_

_"A deal is a deal." _I raise my sword, holding it out parallel at Doflamingo's eye level. Doflamingo lets out his hysterical laugh again. It makes me nauseous hearing it. I distance myself from him as far as possible. This skill is going to be a tough one. And I have to be aware of that Virgo. He will butt in our business anytime, if Doflamingo is hurt, by me. I try to take another few steps back. Out of my expectation, I can't move. _Come back, sword. _No. My hand can't retract. _Move five steps back, feet. _No. My legs can't move. What's going on? Is this some kind of trap?

_"Ffufufufu... I don't want to hurt you. My major quest is to send you back to Mariejois without any single cut or bruise. Too bad you can't move now, eh?"_

_"Jerk, you're a cheat." _I get it. He's using his devil fruit power. I don't want to be sent back. I want to save Law. But I'm under his control. I can't help but standing numbly, staring at the dumb _Shichibukai _who's coming closer and closer to me.

_"Ay ya ya ya ya ya!" _A sudden impulse comes from behind and Doflamingo is sent flying from striding to me.

_"Bepo!" _I exclaim.

Bepo doesn't care much about me. What worries him the most is Law. _"Captain Law! Hey you two, come and release captain!"_

Shachi and Penguin come to Law's aid immediately. _"It won't budge, it's kairouseki!"_

_Kairouseki? _The Seastone? I run toward Law and slash open the chain. Then I remember my deal with Doflamingo. He's still lying on the ground, gritting his teeth for the embarrassment for being kicked in front of a girl. _Don't worry, I'll finish this pronto. _Judging the distance, we should be far enough from each other. I throw my sword high in the air and use _haki _to stop it from falling. I hold my palms together, keeping my gaze at my sword. _"Split of hundred!" _A total of hundred swords are formed in the air beneath the ceiling. _Concentrate, concentrate. _I shoot equal _haki _to each of them. _"Compound!" _All of the swords form into one piece, turning my sword into a powerful weapon-a sword that contains hundredth times more _haki _than normal sword. _"Free fall." _I stop myself using the _haki _of resisting the gravity but not the _haki _that enhances my swords' attack. Witnessing the sword thrusts into Doflamingo's body with blood splatting out, he screams out in pain. Talk about vitality.

_"Joker!" _Virgo's shocked to see his boss defeated by a female knight. Oh-uh. He'll come after me in any minute. I get back my sword and wipe away the blood stain with my shirt tail. My breath comes in short pant. My vision turns blur. These are the side-effects of _that skill._ But the symptom that can't be seen... is my life is shortened by a few years.

_"Ffufufufu... Nice one. You impressed me well." _Doflamingo gets himself up from the ground. He covers his right chest, which is the spot where I stabbed there. More blood flows out. I shift my sword, but the side-effects got me pretty serious. I brace myself to fight him, although I'm exhausted. I try to wield my sword, no use, my body is frozen again. Bepo, Shachi and Penguin sprint to Doflamingo's direction, that's when my body begins to move again. Not by my own will. My feet slide forward themselves and my hand which is holding the sword swings and attacks the trios.

Bepo, Shachi and Penguin go down one by one. Shit. I let him got my controlled the second time. Overwhelmed with anger, I rush at Doflamingo. _Kill him. Kill him. KILL HIM! _Before I reach him, Virgo appears miraculously fast in front of me. Law gets into our way, stabbing the pommel of his _nodaichi _at my waist. With another swift slash, he blocks Virgo's bamboo attack.

_"Go away, Capoferro-ya. He's stronger than what you think." _Law snorts.

Stupid Law. He hit me really hard to my waist. That totally restricts my movement. I have no choice but sitting on the floor without moving an inch. _"That goes to you to, Captain Law. Are you strong enough to defeat him?" _I say.

_"It depends." _What the hell is with this answer.

Virgo eyes Law thoughtfully. _"Damn brat. Hand the knight out."_

_"Sorry to remind you, but she defeated Joker. That's the deal."_

_"That WAS the deal. Joker is not defeated. He still can move around, but your knight... no. All I can say is she did a good job of hurting Joker."_ Virgo is now half-naked, with his trousers and sunglasses left. Strange to say, Virgo's body size has increased significantly and turns black. I guess it's the _Busoshoku Haki. _One sight of it brings my worries up for Law. Law isn't afraid. He uses "Room" and slides backward with his _nodaichi _up. That's right. His devil fruit power can get him cut through everything he wants. For a moment I can see hope's sparkling.

It turns out I'm wrong. In fact, Law and I are wrong. Virgo's armor defends Law's attacks. His _haki _is so strong that Law's attempt to slice him into half fails. Virgo finishes Law with a strike using his bamboo stick which is harden by the _haki. _He hits Law to his back and that brings Law to fall right in front of Doflamingo.

_"Law!" _I yelp. Doflamingo laughs with a long shriek. He controls Law to get himself up and make Law holds his own hands around his neck.

_"Listen you damn knight. You're coming with me or not? Yes, I'll let him go. No, I'll make him strangle himself to death fufufufu..."_

What should I do? Law's in trouble, so is the trios. What should I do, _master?_

I recall the time when I got chosen as one of the members of Royal Academy of Knights and master has his first lesson with me.

* * *

_"What is a must for a fighter, Valerie?"_

_"Courage to be bold, and fearless against the enemies from the front line!" _I answered with full confidence.

_"Ahaha. Yes. That is important but there is something more important than that. Valerie, do you know what it is?"_

_"Well, I'm not so sure. I have learned knights must destroy enemies in the front line."_

_"A fighter must be able to carry things on his back."_

_"Carry things on his back?"_

Master let out a light chuckle. _"I'm not talking about moving heavy objects. Your allies and comrades at your back, they must be able to trust you with their life. The men in the front line must be able to have faith in you by showing them you are responsible."_

_"I see."_

_"The closer a fighter is to his comrades, the bigger his back must be to gain the faith. If you charge alone or run away because you are scared, your comrades will not be able to see your back! Be a fighter who can always show your back to your comrades."_

* * *

_"Capoferro-ya... Just... run..." _Law splits out few bits of blood from his mouth.

_"No, I won't run." _I move my hands to reach for my sword. _"I know there's a way to end this. I promise you, the Heart Pirates will be continued to sail until the end of the Grand Line."_

_"What... are you... talking about?" _Law asks.

Doflamingo grunts. _"She said she's coming with me, you fool."_

I give Doflamingo's comment no reply. Instead of Doflamingo, I look at Law. _"Tell Bepo that he wins __the bet."_

_"What bet?"_

_"About the one million beri. He can have my sword after this, he'll earn at least one million beri by selling my sword."_

_"Huh?"_

_"Hey, you did say that... Weaklings can't pick their way of death, right?"_

_"Yeah..." _Law knits his eyebrow, not sure of what I plan to do.

_"Please say that I'm not a weak one, but a strong one... For I choose to, die for you." _Without another word, I stab the sword into my abdomen.

_"Valerie!" _

_I'm glad you call my name before I die, Law. And... _

_"Don't take this as your guilt, Law." _It's my turn to split out the blood. _"I owe you this... I love you."_

_"Valerie!"_

Now that the damn _Shichibukai _will have no idea to bring me back to life. And he'll let go of Law for that I'm dead. Whatever it'll be, I'm sure Law'll be safe. He'll treat the trios before he has the chance to treat me. _Master, I did it. I showed them my back. _I'm not afraid of death. I guess that's just part of loving people: you have to give things up. Sometimes you even have to give them up.

Before the world in front me fades into complete darkness, I repeat the words in my heart.

_Law, I love you._

* * *

**It cracks my brain to arrange the story line for this chapter so... sorry for the late update. Remember Doflamingo said that Law was defeated by Vergo two years back? I created my own version of that. Hope you guys like it.**


	36. Chapter 36

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: I have more surprises up in my sleeves kekeke...**

**Miss Doflamingo: My apology if I made you cry. I was watching Korean Drama and I turned emo before I started writing that chapter...**

**Girl-luvs-manga: Oops... did you say tragic? Omg I have no intention to make my fanfic a tragic **

**AFantasyBabe: you mean Valerie's technique on Doflamingo? I still have no idea for its name... Urgh.**

* * *

_"Valerie, can you hear me? Armand, give her a morphine injection! Jesse, is the towel sterilized? Press it firmly on her wound to stop the bleeding! Be fast, I'll give her a general anesthetic and start the surgery soon!"_

_"But captain... Is the morphine necessary? She'll suffer from hallucination."_

_"Can't you see this massive hemorrhage?"_

People are rushing around me. Lying on the gurney, blood from my lips staining the coat, pain ripping through my belly, and wondering why I'm not dead yet. _Noblesse oblige_. It means that people who have special advantage of wealth, etc. should help other people who do not have these advantages. Unfortunately, only less than 15% of the nobles know their responsibilities well. For a noble to sacrifice for a commoner, it seems I'm one of the 15%. Or should I be taken as the noblest noble of all? Maybe that's the reason why God spares my life. I saved Law.

I hear someone saying the trio's names. I hear someone panicking. The fact that I was the one who cut them all strikes me. I see. God's wrong in sparing my life. I nearly killed my comrades. I should be dead for my guilt. Why is Law wanting to rescue me that much? I remember he's badly injured too. Are Doflamingo and Virgo coming for us? Do they think that I'm dead and give up on capturing me? Too many questions, too less answers. It's always like this.

The throbbing pressure from the towel activates my sensory cells altogether. I let out a scream of pain, mentally cursing Jesse who's pressing the towel. Armand takes the chance, injecting morphine into my muscle. I cough, spewing out another mouthful of blood before passing out.

* * *

The morphine is a strong drug. Hallucination starts with snippets of visual memory in my head like cards in poker games: Mom baking cake for my tenth birthday. Law and I talking to each other for the first time. Dad shaking his head after finding out I enrolled the Royal Academy of Knights. The time Aurora had taken me to watch great fights between warriors, cheering for the victors. Falling asleep in the woods while waiting for enemies' appearance, which was the first nocturnal mission given after I passed my amateur's test. Fighting at the front line with my fellow knights.

The flashing of memory stops right at the moment when Law pushed me away, cut me to my belly accidentally with the kitchen knife in his hand. It was useless foe him to do that because I had seen it all. Provoked by Saint Charloss's words that he wasn't eligible to go along with a noble like me, Law killed his parents, thinking that he would be adopted by other noblemen. I understood his feelings. We were forced to bow down to that _pig_ every time Saint Roswald came for my dad for his treatment.

Law did not cut me deep but deep enough to leave a big scar. I was late to stop him from killing his parents. We argued over it and ended up burying his bloodied parents in the snow together. No one's ever gonna discover it, not even that _pig_. Luckily, my dad had an errand. Luckily, my mom was home in bed. Luckily, everything went on well. No. Not that well actually. I was angry at Law. How could he took that _pig'_s words so serious?

_"Although this is the first time, I solemnly swear I'll never do it again." _I mumbled, shoving my hands that covered with blood into pockets.

_"I'm supposed to become a surgeon. Instead of saving life, I killed first." _Law sighed, which was the absolute truth.

_"No, dude. Your first kill is not your parents. You have done your killings by dissecting the frogs." _I said sarcastically.

_"Sorry, Capoferro-ya. I know you're angry..."_

_"You're just an eight-year-old. No one would put the blame on you, so... I don't care." _I lied.

_"There's no need to treat me like a child," _Law snapped. _"I'm the one who always topping in exam."_

_"Fine," _I answered. _"To tell the truth, I envy you."_

_"Why?"_

_"You have unlimited freedom from now on. I believe you'll inherit your parents' wealth. You can further studies in medical field. You'll become a great surgeon." _I said bitterly.

_"No, I don't want to be as great as your dad." _he said. _"I wouldn't want to have those World Nobles to be treated by me."_

_"Oh. I see."_

A long silence fell between us. Law walked me home as usual. We said goodbye, and I watched his back getting smaller and smaller. I was so devastated that I cried out his name as I stomped through the snow till I reached him.

_"Trafalgar Law! I don't care about your status! I don't care that you're a commoner! And I don't care that I'm a noble! We're still friends, get it?"_

_"...Yeah, I get it..." _he eyed me like I was some kind of psycho who yelled nonsense at him. He spun and walked on. I knew I saw it. I saw his lips creased into a smile before he turned his head away completely.


	37. Chapter 37

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone and all incident are purely inventions.**

**10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat: No, not really. Like I said, I have more surprises up in my sleeves**

**Girl-luvs-manga: You bet. But their childhood stories are pretty hard to come up with coz' they're not oridinary people like us...?**

**TheKennyquin: I enjoy twitching my story so... need no rush to put such conclusion xD**

* * *

North Blue is a country which specializes in advanced technology like any other winter islands. For example, in Drum Island, they have the best medical expertise compared to rest of the winter islands. In Karakuri Island, Dr. Vegapunk invented cyborgs and mechanical structures to use as labor force to build an in-ground heating system for the island's people.

People in winter islands find ways to improve their quality of life in such extreme climate countries. And that's why our education system had to be more progressive, exclusive yet stressful. Unlike children from the other countries, we studied Biology, Chemistry and Physics in our early years. For Biology, we did dissection by age of 10. Law was 8, and he was a genius. He impressed the teacher by labeling the parts of the frog's digestive system accurately and the full marks were in our hand completely. Glad to be in the same group with him. The other kids did nothing but crying and complaining that they were scared of the sight of blood and the frogs were adorable (I personally don't think so). For Chemistry, we were the fastest to get the product of neutralization, a perfect green color liquid from the mixture of acid and alkali. As for Physics, well...

If Law's most embarrassing moment is when he hid the frog under his crotch, mine will be this physics experiment. Not really an experiment, we just thought of it and took that it would be fun to do that. We read about how people challenge others in a toilet. They have competition to see who's faster to finish rolling off the toilet paper. Law and I decided to do that as an assignment for Physics. We fussed over the toiler matters and I was forced to go with him to the gents. We used toilet papers with the exact thickness. I started first, Law recorded the time. 32.8 seconds. Before Law had his turn, I had this sudden urge to pass water. Then I realized I had no tissue paper with me. Law was laughing hard on the floor. And so the experiment was postponed because Law gave me his toilet paper and we couldn't continue without the same toilet paper.

You would think that I used Law to get good grades but no... he used me as well. Most of the experiment required students to walk up to the podium and do presentation. It was a lot of talking work and Law forced me to do that. He said for a kid who skipped grade would grab lots of attention and doing the presentation make things worse. Luckily I was always the one who got the second place after Law in class. They had no doubt that I was the one who conducted the whole experiment.

I never liked the education system in North Blue, although I had good grades. Maybe that was part of the reason dedicated to why I chose the Royal Academy of Knights. Cresles Girls' School was worse. You could kill me instantly by sending me back to that place. I'll never go back there. More than anyone, more than anything. I was tired of the endless study of etiquette. I was fed up with the noble system. I was sick of other snobbish girls.

But I never got bored cursing my dad every night for sending me there.

* * *

Another hallucination, which was the past too. Each of us was given a form to fill; teacher ordered us to think over and write down our ambition before handing up the form. We had two weeks time to crack our brains. _Ambition? _This was not good. I never thought of becoming somebody like scientist or technologist or even doctor to dedicate for our country. No. Screw up everything. The rest of the classmates were chatting happily about how they wanted to become this and that. No one did realize that a girl was sitting at the corner of the class having mind-fuck with ambition. Everyone was glowing with their _great _ambition except for me, who faded into the background even though I easily overcame those exams every time.

After five minutes, teacher made us keep our form and announced she would continue on our syllabus. I heard the chair beside me screeched. Law stood up and made his way to the podium and handed over his form. Teacher's eyes flicked from us to the form. Giving the form a quick glance, teacher sighed and lectured Law for he couldn't fill the three blanks with the same ambition. He wrote _surgeon _in three of them.

I was on the verge to burst out laughing. I knew Law cared less other ambitions which were irrelevant with surgeon. By the next day, I had a good laugh over the changes he made:1. Surgeon 2. Doctor 3. Medical expert. The teacher had no choice but shoved his form under her dictionary and I thought that was pretty ironic. Law seemed to be playing thesaurus game with her, yet she placed his form underneath that thick vocabulary book.

In that two weeks time, I confronted the accident, lost my mother, being hospitalized, unable to attend my mom's funeral. I promised Law I would assist him, and that caused my form to be scribbled with: 1. Surgeon Law's assistant 2. Doctor Law's assistant 3. Medical Expert Law's assistant. Before I had the chance to pass it to teacher, I had already transferred to Cresles Girls' School. Dad never wanted me to hang out with Law, so I told him if I get hurt going along with him, he could send me to the noble school as he wished. Obviously, he found out the scar on my abdomen through the doctor who did the surgery on me.

Just like every noble does, he discriminated Law and said it was his fault I got sent to that school. And he had another reason that put me into complete silence: Mom had always wanted me to be educated through noble schooling. Granted, that was written in her will.

* * *

**They said Doflamingo ate the "Badass Badass no mi" HAHAHA**


	38. Chapter 38

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone and all incidents are purely invention.**

**TheKennyquin: Hahaha, I thought I was the only girl who had ever walked into a gents. May your anticipation be rewarded by this chapter xD**

**Miss Doflamingo: Thanks for your encouragement. It really means a lot to me =)**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: Glad you like it, how about this chapter? :p**

**Girl-luvs-manga: YES YES YES MUAHAHA once again, thanks for your review xD**

**valeries26: Oh my goodness I love that name so much that I used it in my first fanfic. If I have a daughter in the future I'm gonna name her Valerie (seriously) thanks for loving my story~**

* * *

Living on the ventilator is an... exertion work. My stomach hurts with each breath. By the tenth day after the surgery, I wake up. I frown. Try to open my mouth. No words come out. I give up. Thinking of my wound. Thinking of fall asleep again. Thinking of... Law.

Something moving beside the gurney catches my attention. I turn lightly and see Bepo's large watery eyes staring down into mine.

_"Ahhhhhh!" _I jump so high more pain jabbing at my belly and the ventilator drops from covering half of my face. I kick off the blanket and trudge to the corner of the room. Walk. Walk. Walk. I order myself. Begin to get used to walking after doing nothing but sleep like a Sleeping Beauty for ten days. _"What are you doing sneaking around here?"_

_"Captain Law said that if you're in a stable condition, I can move you to your room coz' you no longer need to rely on this life-supporting system." _Bepo says. He pauses for breath. _"You look better than we expected. You can even walk by yourself."_

_"I'm not fine. My stomach hurts like hell." _I grunt, squad down in the corner, wrapping my arms around my belly.

_"Are you having period right now? I can help you get some tampons from captain."_

_"No, you idiot! I meant my wound!" _How could he said such thing without feeling?

_"That's the aftereffect of the surgery. You cut yourself pretty deep. Fortunately the wound is not large." _

_"And I cut you too. And Shachi. And Penguin." _I lower my head to face the floor, regretting for what I've done to them under the control of that big asshole.

_"Too bad you were not successful in killing us. I'm strong, ya' know!" _Bepo lifts up both of his flabby arms. That's hilarious. He never fail to make me laugh. But laughing adds more pain to my wound. Urgh.

The door to the room swings open, and Law walks in. Even from a distance I can tell he curses in frustration. But why? Law takes another few steps closer to me, and, grabs me up from the floor, and pushes me hard that I fall back to the gurney instantly. I grunt again. Didn't he know that how much it hurts, like my intestines churning up together?

_"Bepo, the report!" _I hear him calls out, withholding the anger inside him.

_"Ay, captain! Blood pressure, okay! Heartbeat, okay! Wound recovery, okay! Digestive system... okay!" _

_"Good, now move her to her room. Slow and gentle." _

_"Err...captain? But I have errands to run with Shachi and Penguin..."_

_"What errands?" _Law raises his eyebrow.

_"Eh? You ordered us to..."_

Before Bepo finishes his sentence, Law gestures him to go on for his errands. Then, he turns to me. _"I'm going to move you, so... stay still. Or you gonna prick your wound."_

What the hell is he saying? He was the one who pricked my wound by tossing me to the gurney, and I suffer too much pain to speak out. In reply, I nod my head. This time, he does move me slow, and gentle, in his arms. I think of the time back in Doflamingo's ship, before I killed myself, I confessed that I love him. Did that scene ever cross his mind? Law's capable of dissembling his own feelings, I can't read his expression. If he doesn't love me... I'll be willing to kill myself again. Sigh.

Law puts me down on my bed and advises me like a doctor to his patient. His face is devoid of emotion and his eyes are... stoic? He looks so cold and distant.

_"Any problem? I think I should go now." _

His voice echoes in my mind and for a second, I sense nightmare. Is this how we gonna end up? No, I don't want that. My breathing is caught in my throat as I watch him takes off striding across my room to the door. _Please, Law, stay._

_"Law, stay, don't leave me! I really love you!" _Tears start falling from my eyes. My chest hurts so bad. God, it freaking hurts like hell. Miraculously, Law stops at the doorstep. He walks back to me slowly. That's when I realize I confess my feelings for him out the second time. This is how my life's gonna end. I'm gonna die from embarrassment.

I motion my hands to shoo Law away and cover my redden face simultaneously. _"Er... I didn't... mean to say that... You must be thinking that I'm crazy, I may hurt my head in the fight. I'm sorry, if I make you difficult, you can go now..."_

Law sits down on the edge of my bed. He holds my hands, and I'm surprised that my hands are trembling frantically in his. Time ticks by and we're still staring into each other's eyes. With one hand clasping both of my hands, he strokes my chin with another hand. Law sighs heavily and closes his eyes, resting his forehead against mine.

His face is hovering near mine. I grab the chance to give him a quick peck on his lips and shift my eyes away to avoid his glance. Before I can say a word, Law leans down, claiming my lips... kissing me with burning intense. He climbs on the bed, on top of me, but carefully avoiding to hurt my wound, fusing his lips with mine. Passion swirls to life within me and I pull him closer. God, I miss this, I miss him.

Our lips part and we both draw a deep breath. _"I finally realize... how much time I have wasted after hearing your confession..."_

_"What do you mean?" _I ask.

_"I'll take you as my girl from now on."_

* * *

**It seems like Valentine Day reaches earlier for them...**


	39. Chapter 39

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incidents are purely invention.**

**Miss Doflamingo: You know every time I write the kissing scene, I have the same mood like you. And the mood won't wear off even after a few days... xD**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: *throw confetti* Enjoy this chapter!**

**Girl-luvs-manga: *victory dance* okay, it's not really my victory. And I pretty hate that they couple like... after 9327220 years.**

**TheKennyquin: YES YES YES THEY'RE TOGETHER **

* * *

_"You still have to take on your shift for patrolling the sub for five nights. Remember, it's delayed, not cancelled." _Bepo prods, cutesy-eyes, _"plus, the rest of the crew wad sluicing down the deck because you were bleeding like hell. Took us a lot of might to do that."_

_"Great. Five nights. I'll be bored to death. I wonder you guys wouldn't mind if I play my guitar every night then?" _I say.

_"Nah. I won't mind if Miss Valerie is willing to serenade me every night." _Penguin blushes. My god. He seems to be quite clinging to me and that's not really a good thing. I. Am. Law's. Girlfriend. And. I. Have. No. Guts. To. Say. It. Coz'. Bepo. Will. Win. That. Goddamn. Bet. And. I. Will. Lose. One. Million. Beri. And. That's. A. Shitload. Of. Money. Fine, I'll deal with that later. Our current status is not very important to be declared to them.

_"No, Miss Valerie. You need no to sing for me. It's a miracle that you're alive. I'm over the moon to see you standing in front of me. Here, now." _Shachi smiles a glinting smile, which makes me almost puke out. What's with these milling people?

_"I think I should go and rest." _I say as I march out of the deck to my room.

_"Guys, there's two days left till we'll get on to the next island. I can give you each a heavy chore, seeing you guys have plenty of time for small talk."_

The moment I set foot in front of the door, everybody hears him and is in silence mode. I look up to Law and nod in agreement with the trio. I fidget nervously, telling myself not to look into his eyes.

I let out an irritated sigh, heading to the boiler room with Jesse. Although I'm already his girlfriend, I have no nuance by compare to all of his subordinates. Lucky him, if I'm a normal girl, I would scold him for mistreating me and cry to make him bow down to me. Wait... is that what normal girls do to their boyfriend? I shrug as I question myself.

_"Wait, Capoferro-ya. You come with me." _Law instructs.

Okay. Trafalgar Law's not a normal guy as I'm not a normal girl. I get to work with him. TEEHEE.

* * *

Jesus Christ. Law orders me around to clean up his office and what he does is sitting on his desk, pulling rank on me. He will complain how I do things ungainly. Excuse me, we've been knowing each other for more than ten years. He should know that he chose a tomboy as his girl. And he should have no regrets over it. I surmise he's just a typical sadist who gain his pleasure from bullying me. And I'm a simpleton who's willing to do his bidding.

_"Hey." _Law breaks the silence while watching me tidying his medical books. He lifts his papers, jogs them together against the desk to make sure their edges are aligned, and slides them into a drawer.

_"What?"_

_"Why don't you take a break? You're my girlfriend, not my maid."_ He taps his_ nodaichi_ against the floor.

_"Ha! Now you mention it. You're still my captain, and I'll still be your subordinate." _I see a deck of cards sticking on the shelve and it reveals to be my cards that Law has confiscated. _"Hey. This, is my stuff."_

_"Once confiscated, consider non-returnable."_ Law snatches them from my hand. _ "I'm going out to breath in some fresh air. Want to come along?"_

_"No"_

_"Is that the way you talk to your life-saver?"_

_"I thought that it's a doctor's responsibility to save life?"_

_"Is it doctor's responsibility to donate blood for his patient?"_

_"No, no one ever says that... Wait, what the hell? You donated blood for me again?"_

_"So, are you coming out or not?"_

Hmph. So he wants me to get sidetracked. _"No."_

_"Don't blame me if you have no place to lay then." _He chuckles at my annoyed face and walks out of the office, holding his big sword. I roll my eyes in irritation. What did he mean by "no place to lay"? Grrr. I pull open his drawer and the book with "JOURNAL" printed on the cover grabs my attention. My heart gives a leap of actual joy.

YES THANK GOD I FINALLY HAVE THE CHANCE TO DIG INTO HIS SECRETS KEHEHEHE RIGHT RIGHT DEAR JOURNAL COME TO MAMA FEAR ME LAW YOUR PRIVATE IS GOING TO BE INTRUDED BY YOUR BELOVED GIRLFRIEND I WONDER WHAT DID HE WRITE ABOUT ME AND DID HE EVER HAVE AN EX OH CRAP WHAT THE HELL I AM THINKING HA HA HA DOULE HAHA MUAHAHAHAHAHA BECAUSE HAHA DIDN'T SOUND EVIL ENOUGH

But no. My excitement is washed away, disappointment replaces it as I scan the first page. Law's handwriting is unreadable. He uses doctors' cursive writing to jot down every page. Great. I put the journal back before anyone comes in. Now that it prevents the disappointment turns into embarrassment if I get caught.

Almost done. This cleaning-Law's-room task didn't get me closer to him. As I lay my foot on the deck, I squint at Law for a few seconds. He sprawls out on Bepo; using hin as his backrest again. He pats the empty space beside him. _"Come," _he orders. With a sigh, I lay beside him awkwardly. It's not often Law talks to me, let alone together on Bepo-and I'll be a fool to waste it.

_"Since we're already couple, we need to plan for our first date." _He says suddenly.

_"Seriously? You want to date with me? I know nothing about dating. And it's on the long list of things I would have asked my mother if I had ever met her."_

_"It won't hurt for a couple to date."_

_"I know that when doctor says it won't hurt, that's when you know you're in trouble." _

_"Good," _Law says with a smirk, but his eyes wonder.

* * *

The submarine ascends and stops at the docks of Daroco Island. According to Armand, this will be the last island we land before reaching Sabaody Archipelago, which is just a stone throw away from the Holy Land of Mariejois. The Noble Island-Land of Sous, is located at South-West from here. That means, I'm going to bump into anyone familiar anytime and they'll seize me and bring me back to my dad.

_"Capoferro-ya, I don't hope you come along with us. The marines are still searching for you around-the-clock these two months." _Law has his usual half-grin-half-smirk face on.

_"Ow. I prefer not to stay with a bunch of mechanics, really." _Yeah, I'm not scared of the other nobles. They shouldn't lay their fingers on me.

We make our way through the town together. Law does some purchase of medical supplies, including bandage. _"Stay close, Capoferro-ya. You wouldn't know when will the marines get into our way. In this world, the wind can change direction before you know it. No telling how it'll go in the future."_

_"No, there's nothing wrong with the wind direction for now."_ Bepo says. We ignore him. I buy a newspaper from a paperboy. The World Government is in dire situation in capturing me. Pity, _come and get me if you dare_. I flip the pages, and hold my gaze on the page entitled "The Eleven Supernovas".

_"Hey captain, you're the fifth among them." _I say, exposing that page in front of them.

_"Eustass Kid... he looks like a mob." _Law snorts.

As we pass by a small stall, I see bacon sizzles and spits under the grill. It smells wonderful. My mouth waters, and I rush to the _oba-san _at the stall straight away. _"Just a sec!' _I inform them.

_"One please," _I point at the bacon. Glancing over my shoulder, I sense Law standing behind me. God. There's no point for him to put up his guard on this bacon-selling _oba-san._

_"Oh, it's you! You look like you become younger, good to see that." _The _oba-san_ packs the bacon and begins saying things I can't catch up. _"Thanks to your kindness, may your nobility shines from within."_

_"Excuse me? It's the first time I come here." _

_"Ohohohoho, how sad you don't remember this old granny. Well, I don't mind, you have much more work on mind."_

Law seizes me by my arm. _"Let's go."_

_"What's wrong, Law? Is there something you know which I don't?"_

His eyebrow rises, and I can tell that I have taken him completely by surprise in the way I asked.

_"Valerie... your mom, she's still alive."_

* * *

**Yo, I'm back from celebrating CNY. In case you guys don't know, yup, I'm a Chinese. Is this a reason or an excuse for the late update? xD**


	40. Chapter 40

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name and names and all incident are purely inventions.**

**Girl-luvs-manga: kekeke, I'm experimenting at the moment**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: yeah, neither do I... xD**

**Miss Doflamingo: LMAO seeing you went chaos about her mom. Don't worry, her mom... well, stay tune ^^**

**TheKennyquin: I'm really happy you said it was a good chapter, hehe, I need to do a lot of research about Valerie's mom... enjoy!**

* * *

My mind is blank. Did he just say... my mother is... alive? Is that true? Or should I trust Law? The odd shivers formerly running down my skin are now replaced by fully fledged goosebumps. I'm too shocked that I pay scant attention to what Law goes on saying the next, but I do pick up some phrases. My mom... was ordained... not the "mom" who was killed in that accident sixteen years ago... What...?

_"The marines are comin'!" _Bepo's shriek pierces through my eardrum and that stops me from wandering. "Marines are coming" sounds perfectly normal than "My mom is alive" by the moment.

_"Shit! There must be someone broke the news that Capoferro-ya is here to them!" _Law sighs before a smirk sprouts on his face. _"Never mind, we'll deal with it. They'll be regret for underestimating us that we couldn't even protect one crew mate."_

I breathe deeply and wait, listening to the noisy approach of footsteps. The four of us are marooned by the marines in no time. Divided into three groups, they have one group with rifles, one group with swords, and one group with some kind of destructive weapons that can shoot bombs which I couldn't name it.

_"Miss Capoferro Valerie, you're under arrest! We know Trafalgar Law used force and trickery to make you join him, now we're here to bring you to Mariejois."_

_"What the hell. Screw off before I chop off your head."_

_"Be quick about it, we're losing precious time here." _We look expectantly at Law, while the marines stare menacingly at him. The marines go for their guns, and there's no thinking anymore.

_"Ay, Captain Law!"_

_"I'll take those filthy swordmen!" _I volunteer. At the corner of my eye, I see Law moving fast and can turn quickly to dodge his opponents. He twists around in a flash, creating that blue-sphere space, swishing his _nodaichi_ past them and make them all disabled. Some without limbs, some without torsos, and some without heads.

Talk about post-mortem.

_Your mom is alive. _I try to shut out the taunting words, fixing my gaze on my preys. I lunge at them, knocking their swords one by one before they have the chance to level them at me. Gah, with this amount I'll be unable to finish them with only one sword. I unsheathe Shiloh and silence the rest with a heavy blow. _"Nitoryu... Deadly Performance: Extinguish!"_

A bomb shoots in my direction and I dodge but the impact of the explosion causes me to roll on the ground. I climb quickly to my feet. The commander begins to chide at his subordinates that they should take me alive, not dead. Shachi steps forward and kicks the commander in the head, sending him flying away from our sight. That's when Armand appears all of a sudden. He comes to inform us that he parked the submarine at the other port to avoid the marine ships. Law compliments his good job and orders us to escape to the port under Armand's lead.

We duck and weave through many of the men as we could. Off in the distance I catch a glimpse of our submarine, with seas churning between the sides of the sub and another ship. The remains of the marines are still following behind us, somehow they have slowed down. The residents and the passer-by starts to rebel; they're throwing things like knives and picks and shovels at the marines, yelling not to get into the "saint's" way. Law and I laugh out heartily at this humorously scene. It doesn't matter anymore that my previous mom's a fraud. Judging from the way that the residents here react, I bet I look 95% like my biological mom.

_"Hey, Law. Is my mom a saint?" _I giggle.

_"I told you she was ordained as a priest. But I personally don't take her as a saint. Her words were rough; guess she still have the knight's blood inside her."_

_"My mom's a knight too?" _Oh my gosh. That is so cool.

_"A former knight. Now get on the sub and I'll take you to her. She's on the Noble Island-Land of Sous."_

* * *

_"We just have to be more careful when we reach the Land of Sous. You know a monster called Beholder? They are also known as the watchmen of Tenryubito. As long as they're there, the events on the island are directly reported to Saint Roswald as they are."_

_"So Saint Roswald is sitting down in the land and watching what is happening there. That puts us to a disadvantage." _Shachi pauses. _"You have any plan for our next movement, captain?"_

_"No."_

_"Oh."_

_"And the Land of Sous has strict security because it's an island only for nobles. Will they let pirates pass in front of their eyes?" _I prod.

_"Good question. But don't forget, Capoferro-ya. You're a noble as long as you carry the name of Capoferro. Besides, your mom is the ruler of the island."_

_"What? My mom rules the island? Oh god." _I roll my eyes.

_"I really want to see her face by the time she sees you." _Law has the evil smirk again. _"It'll be a surprise to her that her own daughter has come to see her."_

_"Did you have some past vendetta with my mom?" _

_"Not really." _

And his smirk betrays him, of course.

* * *

It is nearly midnight when we're no longer sailing and the sub harbors in a dock somewhere or anchors at sea close to the Land of Sous. The darkness of the island is alleviated by the lanterns, as if there is festival going on. Weird, I see no Beholders around.

_"Should we wait till morning arrives?" _Bepo yawns at the cold breeze. It's been a long time he could enjoy a good sleep in coldness.

_"No, the security is loose at the moment. Why should we wait? There isn't anyone on guard."_ I climb up to the fence and jump off. Before I land on the ground, the sea water under me is beginning to bubble. Something wet urges out of the water surface and grabs my leg and pull my whole torso downwards and I'm soaked in the freezing cold water.

_"Valerie!" _Bepo screams. _"There's monsters in the sea water! We should have waited!"_

_"Capoferro-ya, are you alright? It's too dark there, I can't see you!"_

_"I'm fine!" _I try to kick off the unidentified creature that holds me but I can't. Law and the trio land on the ground and find me floating on the sea water. As they're getting closer to me, this time, more creatures spread out from the water and nab them all. Although I can't see well in the dark but I can tell they look like seaweed under the illumination of the lanterns.

_"Oh great." _Law spits out water from his mouth._ "Someone helps me to find my hat."_

_"No, no. My movement is limited." _Penguin says.

_"Captain Law, I would love to help you but I'm stuck here." _Bepo cries.

_"Silence, scum!" _There's some people standing over us on the shore. _"They might be some valuable pirates that tried to invade our island. Summon Lord Elroy right away!"_

_"Lord Elroy... Is Lord Elroy my biological dad?"_

Law knits his eyebrows. _"No, the doctor you hate the most is truly your dad."_

_"If my mom's the ruler here, then who's Lord Elroy?"_

_"No idea. The last time I met your mom was..."_

_"I said silence!" _The men on shore aim their pistol squarely on Law.

_"Oh well. I have no choice but to take your order you son of a bitch."_

_"What's going on here?" _Another loud female's voice cuts in. Never once in my life I hear such cold voice. I suck in deeply, inhaling the salty smell of the sea water, preparing for the worst to come.

_"Lord Elroy."_ The men salute and reply. Dude, Lord Elroy's a female?

_"My apologies my lord. We have been reported that someone's invading our island and it turns out to be some pirates. It was not my wish to have you to be forced to intervene in this case while you were performing the sacred rituals." _

Just as the man finishes his sentences, Lord Elroy knocks him down with a stick. _"This is my island, not 'our island'. You'd better watch your mouth." _She steps forward and lifts up the lantern in her hand. It's abnormally strange that the lantern she holds shines brighter than the others'. Under the faint light, I look up to her and she looks at me. We both gasp. Lord Elroy wears a long dark blue robe with yellow strings as linings and white collars that frames her long neck with a golden christian cross hanging neatly on it.

She does not look 95% like me. In fact, she looks 98% like me. The small, sharp eyes which exude a frightening aura; the slender build which is exposed by her tight robe. Except for the long, black hair, which mine is short.

_"Say, this is my territory. Welcome, and, nice to see you again, Trafalgar Law."_


	41. Chapter 41

**I wrote this for the sake of Law! Read it, enjoy it, and love it :)**

**This is a fictional story, do not take it seriously. All characters in this story have no existence and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names and all incident are purely inventions.**

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: A mysterious guy would be nice xD**

**Miss Doflamingo: Yup. Indeed. But she's an OC I created I love the most xD**

**Pokemon Guy 84: Thanks for your review! **

**Girl-luvs-manga: prepare for the history of theirs!**

**MelissaRM: hehe, nice to hear from you again :)**

* * *

_"Say, this is my territory. Welcome, and, nice to see you again, Trafalgar Law."_

Law allows a lull forms in the conversation. _"I bet your Insight predicted my arrival. Yet you put me in this objectionable situation."_

_"You hate warm welcome isn't it? So tell me, what is the degree of hotness over there? Does that suit you fine?"_ Lord Elroy teases at the pathetic sight of us - um, to be specific, she teases at the pathetic sight of Law._ "I did predict you will be here, which explains this objectionable situation I give you. I always know your presence brings no good tidings. You are here for me?"_

_"Indeed, I don't like warm welcome, but I don't remember myself fancy cold welcome. Your presence brought no good tidings as well for what happened sixteen years ago." _Law snaps at her. _  
_

_"Shut it, brat. We agreed on never bring up that issue. You should be grateful that I enhanced the sea water. A devil fruit user has to be more vigilant of the sea, especially pirates," _she scowls, stomping her feet in frustration while her arms hang limply on her side. I can tell that she's avoiding me, trying not to look at me nor talk to me, or even ask Law about my identity. I mean, if you see someone who looks exactly like you, won't you feel the urge of exploring the truth out? But she says nothing. NOTHING.

_"I expect worse. There's no Beholder around tonight." _Law says.

_"It's because I have the duty to keep them away when I have sacred rituals to be performed." _Lord Elroy answers.

One of the men raises his hand. Lord Elfroy nods her head, indicating him has her approve to speak.

_"My Lord, shall we set them in the prison and deal with them tomorrow? The ritual should be done before twelve." _

_"Huh. Clerical obligation." _Law remarks sarcastically.

_"It's best to move them away. I can't stand the revolting sight and smell of this brat. He never change."_

_"Well said. I never change. I'm still the surgeon who loves dark, takes great delight in the misfortune of others, and prefer to lead a life of as far away from goodness as possible."_

Lord Elroy puts on her cloche and leaves the shore without another word. The wild wind blows in every direction. Strangely, I do not feel cold from it. The swaying of her robe along the wind does. The men begin to haul us out from the water rough and tie us with steel chain, Law with _kairoseki_. Can't believe I have the chance to be a prisoner once in my life. And is sentenced by my not-sure-but-soon-to-be mom.

Heading dungeon, we pass the long row of mansions, the nobles watch us dismissively from the landscape of their lives. There isn't much to distinguish their home from the others. Not trying to brag, my old house back in North Blue is so big that it could easily swallow the mansions here. Since I'd moved out to the hostel of Royal Academics of Knights for twelve years, I could barely tell the details of my house, except for its size.

* * *

I'm stuck in one cell alone by myself. Chains laying on the brick wall, with moss growing from each crevice; floor with chipped stones. Law and the trio are closed in front of me, across my cell. Disaster. I guess I have no choice but to sleep in front of these guys tonight, worrying my bad sleeping posture will be exposed to them if I'm not careful enough. The floor looks all but wet. The wooden bench doesn't seem comfortable for my height.

There's four thumps coming from their cell. Spinning around, I find them are already fast asleep; Law lying neatly on Bepo, Shachi leaning against the wall and Penguin stretching his limbs widely on the floor. Someone has cast a spell on them. There's no way Law could sleep soundly while I'm stuck right here.

I pinch my eyes close and force myself to stand still. I sense sharp stare coming from everywhere.

_Is it the Beholders?_

Holding myself against the wall, the dizziness starts rushing in my blood, and the solid surface begins to swirl, like I'm going to teleport to another dimension. What is going on? For a moment I hear water dripping from the ceiling, the next minute I hear the low sizzling of candles.

_"Success." _It's the voice of Lord Elroy. I'm no longer in the eerie underground dungeon. What beholds in my eyes now is a nave; floor fitted in exquisite red carpet with rows of pews arranged on it. Aside from the stained-glass rose windows, the space is adorned with the most expensive sculptures along the path to the lectern. Hanging loosely but elegantly above us, is a crystal chandelier that shines by reflecting the candle lights decorating on it.

_"Am I in a church?"_ I can't help myself asking this dumb question.

_"Yeah. Have you ever see that in a prison?" _Lord Elroy points her finger at the immense Christian cross hanging on the wall of sanctuary.

_"How did you bring me here?" _

_"I thought that brat had told you every shit about me." _She hisses. Oh my god, she's a priest that speaks atrocious language, guess I'll have to ignore it. _"What would you like to discover? I'm damn free now to reveal anything. I heard that you like stories, especially those delivered by the stepmonster, am I right?" _

_"Stepmonster? Is it true that my previous mom was a fraud?"_

_"I'm sad to tell you this, but, yes. She deserved her death like the way a bitch does."_

_"And you're the real one?"_

_"Even if I'm the real one, I doubt that you're my daughter. They tried to brainwash me that I had a son." _She smiles, but her dark eyes, bordered by graceful lines, are tight with emotion. _"So, any stories that I have to meet your desire?"_

_"Tell me your love story." _I blurt out.

_"Ha! As if I have one. And yes, I do have one." _She strides to the grand pipe organ and starts playing soft music. _"Before that, would you be so kind to introduce yourself?" _

_"The name's Capoferro Valerie. 26 years old, if you're wondering. A former knight in Royal Academics of Knights; and now, a pirate."_

_"Okay. Actually, there's nothing special between me and your dad. People fall in love when they're young... and wild and free. I was a knight, and I studied in the same school as you did. Your dad... he was the one who saved my life from one horrendous battle."_

_"And you fell for him...?"_

_"Of course not. It was after. He took care of me for nearly five months in the hospital, and we started to develop feelings for each other. But he was a true coward when it came to love. Before I was released from the hospital, he said nothing. And that got me really nervous. "Coz I won't be able to see him again. I had to go for one war after one. I made up a plan. I convinced myself to confess my feelings for him."_

_"You wrote him a letter?"  
_

_"No. Writing a letter is so not my style you silly. I sang him a song." _She presses hard the piano keys, making a loud "DONG". _"I was terrible at playing piano. But I was a knight. A knight takes on challenges with no fear. I practiced six hours, five days until I got all the notes right."_

And there Lord Elroy goes singing along the rhythm she plays.

_If I walk, would you run?_  
_If I stop, would you come?_  
_If I say you're the one, would you believe me?_  
_If I ask you to stay, would you show me the way?_  
_Tell me what to say, so you don't leave me_  
_The world is catching up to you_  
_While you're running away to chase your dream_  
_It's time for us to make a move_  
_'Coz we are asking one another to change_  
_And maybe I'm not ready_

_But I'll try for your love_  
_I can hide up above_  
_I will try for your love_  
_We've been hiding enough_

_If I sing you a song, would you sing along?_  
_Or wait till I'm gone, oh how we push and pull_  
_If I give you my heart, would you just play the part?_  
_Or tell me it's the start of something beautiful_  
_Am I catching up to you?_  
_While you're running away to chase your dreams_  
_It's time for us to face the truth_  
_'Coz we are coming to each other to change_  
_And maybe I'm not ready_

_But I'll try for your love_  
_I can hide up above_  
_I will try for your love_  
_We've been hiding enough_

_If I walk, would you run?_  
_If I stop, would you come?_  
_If I say you're the one, would you believe me?_

_-Try from Asher Book_

_"It's a beautiful song." _I praise and adore her play.

_"To capture him was my major mission. And hell yeah, mission accomplished." _She snickers. _"That brat's your boyfriend?"_

_"Ehhh? How come you would know?"_

_"My Insight told me."  
_

_"Insight? What's an Insight?"_

_"Damn it. How should I put this?" _She heaves out a sigh and continues. _"I'm also a devil fruit user. I ate the Holy Holy no mi, which means I have the power of a God. Insight grants me the ability to look through people's heart and discover everything about them. Oh yeah, I can predict the future too. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a soothsayer. Now back to the topic. I would advise you not to be together with that brat."_

_"Why is that so?"_

_"A knight is hard to get along with a doctor. Trust me babe, I know it. It's a paradox for a pair of knight and doctor to be together. A knight holds the strong will and believe he could beat every opponent of his because he's not afraid to be beaten. A doctor, even the most shitty brat, will try his very best to save the life he loves. A knight that will fight to death, a doctor that will rescue with all his might; you guys... better not be lovers."_

_"Your first advice as a mom... Sucks."  
_

_"Go ahead and remain stubborn as your wish. I'm not going to stop you." _Her face looks sullen all of the sudden. _"Are you ready for the worst to come?"_

_"Do you mean our relationship will be full of obstacles?"  
_

_"No, why should I care about your fucking lover. I mean the past, the stories I owe you. The history of the Capoferro's family. Which relates me, you, your dad, the Tenryubitos... and..." _she traits off before the name. _"Law."_


End file.
